GPRTU is best transport union in Volta Region

The Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) Tuesday emerged winners of this year’s Volta Regional Best Transport Union.

The Union took away a refrigerator and sets of road safety enhancing materials such as reflective triangles, Ghana Highway code and Road Traffic Acts.

Metro Mass Transport (MMT), Progressive Transport Owners Association (PROTOA), and Cooperative Transport came second, third and fourth in that order.

The event was organized by the National Road Safety Commission under the theme, “sustainable road transport system-the role of Road Safety”.

The Awards scheme, in its third year, was to promote road safety consciousness among drivers, transporters and agents of road safety.

It also sought to create awareness on road safety issues and ensure the maintenance of discipline on the roads, safe road networks, transport cost consciousness and promotion of Ghana as a safe tourist destination. Mr. Henry Ford Kamel, Volta Regional Minister who presented the awards, commended the GPRTU for upholding high operational, driver and vehicle maintenance standards. He expressed unhappiness over the costly road accidents and advised drivers to abide by their ethics and standards.

“I commend all drivers for your contribution to national development but you have to adhere to your standards to reduce the economic cost of road accidents to the country,” Mr Kamel said. Mr. Sebastian Akyeampong, Volta Regional Manager of the National Road Safety Commission, said the road safety situation in the Region for the half-year was not “pleasant.”

“Between January and June this year, 452 cases of crashes have been reported, involving 667 vehicles and resulting in 367 injuries and 82 deaths,” he noted. Mr. Akyeampong identified driver fatigue, drunk driving, over speeding, over loading and “jay walking” as some causes of crashes in the Region.

He said the Commission was decentralizing its operations and intensifying education and awareness creation to reduce road crashes in the Region.