The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), in collaboration with Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS), has commissioned road safety improvement works at James Town in Accra.
It marks a major milestone in Accra’s commitment to reducing road injuries and fatalities since 2015.
It is also expected that the implementation of these interventions will ensure the safety of vulnerable road users and ensure a sense of community ownership when accessing the corridor.
Ms. Elizabeth Kwatsoe Sackey, Chief Executive of Accra Metropolis, who commissioned the project, told Ghana News Agency in an interview that road accidents remained one of the leading causes of serious injuries and of deaths in Accra, hence the improvement works in James Town.
She said that in areas where pedestrians were present, vehicle speeds must be kept low and properly shielded to prevent death and serious injury.
Among the interventions approved with the support of BIGRS and the World Resources Institute (WRI), through its safety-promoting tactical urban planning program, were the raising of pedestrian crossings as well as rumble strips to help calm traffic.
“Road Safety Lines properly marked along the entire stretch to delineate traffic lanes, 30 kilometer speed limit and mandatory warning and safety, while wider lanes have been narrowed to help reduce vehicles “, she said.
Ms Sackey presented statistics from the AMA’s Annual Road Safety Report from 2019 to 2020, indicating that fatalities among vulnerable road users, particularly pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists, accounted for 76-85% .
She said the evidence highlighted the need to prioritize the protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users, adding that school zone signs had been posted to communicate to motorists the need to observe safety in the section due to the presence of pedestrians.
Other approved safety interventions were related to warnings and mandatory signs were installed to communicate to motorists the presence of calming measures and the locations of pedestrian crossings.
The Chief Executive assured that the AMA will continue to work with the National Road Safety Authority, Bloomberg Philanthropies and all partners in the initiative to deploy proven solutions to save lives and improve the environments where people live, work and play.
AMA-BIGRS has four components, namely Safer Streets and Mobility, Mass Media and Communication, Law Enforcement and Road Safety Monitoring, which were undertaken under these components since 2015.
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