Reports from the National Road Safety Authority revealed that road traffic crashes and its resultant fatalities and injuries declined by 14 per cent in the first five months of the year 2020 compared to 2019 figures.

Provisional statistics on road traffic crashes from January to May 2020 indicated that a total of 5,465 crashes were reported, involving 9,163 vehicles, with 958 incidents of pedestrian knockdowns, 909 deaths, and 5,703 injuries.

Compared to the same period in 2019, this year’s situation represented a reduction in cases reported by 5.22 per cent, vehicles involved by 2.54 per cent, pedestrian knockdowns by 25.5 per cent, fatalities by 14.49 per cent and injuries by 3.47 per cent.

However, there was a 12.64 per cent increase in fatalities involving motorcycle users over the same period.

This was in a statement from the Authority’s office and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Thursday.

The statement said though the reductions can be partly attributed to the reduced motorization due to the lockdown policy of the government as a result of the outbreak of COVID-19, the Authority did not relent on its road safety education and advocacy programmes with its stakeholders.

“While the relative reduction is encouraging, the number of fatalities and injuries through road traffic crashes are still high. The Authority cautions drivers to minimize their travel speeds and avoid wrongful overtaking, driving under the influence of alcohol and driving tired’, it said.

The statement advised pedestrians to cross the roads at a designated or safe point, wear seatbelts and speak up against driver misbehaviour in traffic and motorcycle riders, urging pillion riders to always wear their crash helmets when in traffic and stop on red at signalized intersections.

With the rains setting in, it advised vehicle owners to ensure that their vehicles have very good tires, wipers, lights and are roadworthy.