The number of road accidents in the Ashanti Region has reduced this year, according to the Regional Police Motor Traffic and Transport Unit.

410 accident cases involving 564 vehicles with 59 deaths were reported in the second quarter of this year as against 550 reported cases in the same period last year which involved 808 vehicles and resulted in 175 deaths.

The number of injured people in those accidents also reduced from 513 last year to 359 which is a significant achievement for road safety education in the region.

However, this has not been any better as compared to the first quarter of this year which saw only 50 deaths resulting from 262 road accident involving 341 vehicles.

The Commanding Officer of the Ashanti Regional Police Motor Traffic and Transport Unit, D S P James Sarfo Peprah told solid news in an exclusive interview that though he commended drivers, the police and all stakeholders in road safety for such an achievement, more could be done to bring motor accidents in the region to the barest minimum.

“The number of accident cases at the end of June this year is one-third the number of cases that were reported at the same time last year. This is an achievement. But we should not rest on our oars. We should work hard until there are virtually no accidents in the region” he said.

D S P Sarfo Peprah however expressed his dissatisfaction with the current spate of vehicular accidents in the Obuasi Municipality and its environs which contributed immensely to the current record of accident cases in the region.

“The drivers of Obuasi have disappointed the MTTU and the people of Ashanti. There were a lot of preventable accidents in the municipality. We could have recorded the lowest number of deaths in recent years if the people of Obuasi had been a bit cautious” he lamented.

He disclosed that 461 traffic offences were committed by drivers, most of whom were sent to court and fined a total of ¢574,000,000 (GH¢57,400) which indicates that most drivers are still recalcitrant on the roads.