1,237 Fatalities in Six Months: NRSA highlights road safety concerns and urges action

The National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) has reported that approximately 1,237 people lost their lives in road crashes between January and June 2024. The alarming number of fatalities has been attributed to wrongful overtaking and drivers’ failure to observe traffic signs.

Pearl Adusu Sateckla, Head of Public Relations at the NRSA, expressed deep concern over the statistics, describing the situation as „worrying.“ She explained: „The contributory factor might be as a result of head-on collisions, and head-on collisions are often caused by wrongful overtaking and overspeeding.“ ” „Research has shown that about 90 % of our Drivers in the country do not adhere to speed limits.“

Sateckla emphasized the severity of crashes associated with high speeds, stating: „When the speed is high, the severity of the crash is so much greater.“

The provisional national traffic crash and casualty statistics reveal that a total of 6,653 road traffic crashes were reported from January to June 2024. These incidents involved 11,283 vehicles of various types, resulting in 8,798 Casualties, which included 1,237 Fatalities and 7,561 Injuries.

While knockdowns decreased by 4,5 %, 3,8 % and 1 % respectively from January to June 2024, compared to the same period in 2023, the number of persons killed increased by 13 %.

June saw 21 (12%) fatalities among individuals below 18 years of age, while 150 (88%) were adults. From January to June, 149 (12%) of the deceased were under 18, and 1,088 (88%) were adults, indicating a relatively high road traffic death ratio of 7:1 for adults to children.

The Bono Region recorded the highest percentage increase in crashes at 41.5%, while the Upper East Region saw the largest decrease at 41.2%. The Oti Region had the highest percentage increase in injuries at 500%, followed by the Savannah Region with a 288,9% increase. The Upper West recorded no change, and the Northern Region saw a 100 % decrease in injuries sustained.

Despite a 13 % increase in fatalities, all other indicators showed decreases when compared to the same period in 2023. Notably, the Greater Accra Region recorded a 11.7% Drop in fatalities, while the Ashanti Region saw a significant 67.5% Increase in deaths, with 131 fatalities.

The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Ghana has called on the government to urgently form a committee to investigate recent road accidents thoroughly and make its findings public, highlighting the need for immediate action to address road safety concerns.