About 70 drivers who failed to observe the motor traffic rules and regulations were arrested for various motor offences were arrested on the Cape Coast -Takoradi highway during a joint operation by a team over the weekend.

The team was made up of members of the Central National Road Safety Commission (NRSC), the Motor Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU), the Drivers and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) and the Ghana Red Cross Society.

The operation started on the Cape Coast-Takoradi highway through to Aburansa near Komenda and ended up in Cape Coast town.

Routine checks on fire extinguishers, first aid kits, wipers, spare tyres and other necessary things that the drivers were supposed to carry in their vehicles were done.

The team also checked if the drivers were qualified to drive; their ages were asked and also the condition of the vehicles ascertained.

Some of the drivers, many of the commercial drivers arrested were charged with in-secure loading, driving without licenses, fire extinguishers, spare tyes and first aids.

About 70 per cent of them had over-loaded their vehicles whilst 20 per cent could not produce the necessary equipment, with 10 per cent of them driving without licenses.

The operation did not only center on vehicle drivers alone but also motor bike riders.

The Regional MTTU Commander, Superintendent of Police Paul Aduhene and the Central Region Deputy Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Johnson Owusu Agyemang, were part of the operation team.

Mr. Stephen Anokye, Regional Manager of NRSC said the aim of the operation was to check the cause of accidents on the roads and find measures to curb them.

Supt. Aduhene said more of such operations will be carried out in order to reduce accidents and to bring sanity on the roads.

He said the drivers arrested will be prepared for court soon.