From January to September 2021, a total of 357 people died in a road accident and others were knockdown.
The number of a pedestrian who was knockdown was 75, while 146 others were motorcycle deaths.
Data from the Motor Transport and Traffic Directorate (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service indicates that Commercial vehicle deaths in the region under the period were 142, private vehicle deaths-69 and 142 commercial vehicle deaths.
Expects to say 10 percent of road accidents in Ghana are caused by drunk driving; Over-speeding constitutes about 50% of road accidents in the country; The first major cause of road accidents in Ghana is poor driving skills; Drivers talking on mobile phones while driving has caused several road accidents; Gross indiscipline is the cause in most cases amongst Ghanaians; Most accidents are caused by broken-down vehicles on our roads.
It appears in Ghana there is a leeway for drivers to drive on worn/second-hand tires; the unworthiness of some cars on our roads also invariably leads to road accidents; Over-loading of vehicles beyond their expected gross weights is a known cause of accidents; fatigue driving is a known cause of road accidents by long-distance drivers; the poor nature of some of our roads has also often been cited as a cause for some vehicular accidents in the country; Disregard for traffic regulations by most drivers also leads to accidents on our roads and Non-existent road markings and signs.
Other regional breakdowns of road accident deaths include Ashanti (423), Accra (341), Tema (151), Central (151), Bono East (95), Western (91), Volta (84), Upper East (77), Savanna (72), Bono (70), Ahafo (56), Western North (54), Northern (46), Upper West (37), Oti (15) and North East (6).
Pedestrians who were knockdown in the regions are as follow; Accra leads with 169, Ashanti (130), Central (60), Tema (43), Western (32), Bono (28), Volta (20), Upper East (16), Western North (10), Northern (7), Ahafo (7), Upper West (5), Bono East (5) while Oti, Savanna, and North East did not record any death from pedestrian knockdowns.
The data also shows that Accra (154) tops the regional breakdown of motorcycle deaths, followed by Eastern (146), Ashanti (126), Upper East (61), Bono East (61), Tema (54), Volta (48), Central (42), Bono (42), Ahafo (42), Western North (37), Northern (30), Western (29), Upper West (19), Oti (11), Savanna (5) and North East (5).
Source: Mybrytfmonline.com/Kofi Atakora
