Driver-education alone cannot minimise road accidents

Accra, July 20, GNA - Driver-education provided by the police for private and commercial vehicle drivers alone cannot change their attitude and minimise fatal road accidents, Mr Solomon Kobina Ntim, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) of the Motor Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU), has said.

He said until drivers themselves realised that flouting basic driving regulation such as jumping red lights, unnecessary over taking, leaving broken down vehicles unattended without warning signs were all driving offences, the problems would still persist on the roads. DSP Ntim in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on Wednesday cited the recent fatal accident on the Graphic Road at Beyeeman Freezing Company Junction in Accra, resulting in 6 deaths and asked: "Did the drivers need the presence of policemen at that spot at dawn when the accident happened to do the right thing?"

He expressed concern about the high level of indiscipline among private cars and commercial vehicle drivers.

DSP Ntim said: "We have taken them through driver education programmes, we have mounted exercises with cameras and alcohol level detectors to check the recalcitrant ones among them so that offenders would be arrested and prosecuted all to minimise the carnage on our roads".

DSP Ntim advised drivers to regard the safety of passengers and pedestrians when driving and warned them not to give their vehicles to unlicensed drivers.