Road traffic crashes, injuries and deaths declined significantly in the Upper East Region in the first quarter of the year, but authorities say reckless riding and weak compliance with safety rules remain a major concern.
Officials of the Ghana National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) said provisional data from January to March shows a 32% drop in reported crashes, from 37 cases last year to 25 this year. Vehicles involved in crashes also fell from 62 to 42 over the same period.
Fatalities declined by about 27%, with 22 deaths recorded compared to 30 in the first quarter of the previous year. Injuries saw the sharpest decrease, dropping by more than 80%, from 74 to 14.
“This is a very good indicator for the region,” the public relations officer of the authority John Quarshie said in an interview on Dreamz FM’s Breakfast Today program. “But even one life lost is too many.”
Officials attributed the improvement partly to intensified public education campaigns and increased engagement with motorists and motorbike riders across the region.
The authority said it has rolled out interventions including roadside sensitization on helmet use, joint enforcement exercises with police, and outreach programs in schools targeting young riders.
Despite the progress, officials warned that risky behavior, especially among youth continues to drive accidents.
“We see a lot of reckless riding, especially among young people trying to show off,” Eric Anokye Fordjour, the regional official said. “The end results are often tragic.”
Motorbike use remains widespread in the region, but compliance with safety measures such as wearing helmets is still low. Authorities say fewer than 10 out of 100 riders consistently wear helmets.
The NRSA emphasized that road safety is a shared responsibility, urging the public to adhere to regulations and report dangerous behavior.
“If we don’t sustain these efforts, the numbers can rise again,” one official said. “We can’t eliminate crashes entirely, but we can reduce their frequency and severity.”
