The National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) has announced plans to introduce mandatory vehicle towing services and a technology-driven traffic enforcement system as part of sweeping reforms aimed at reducing road crashes and fatalities across Ghana.
The Director-General of the NRSA, Mr. Abraham Amaliba, said the measures, which are expected to be rolled out from next year, are intended to tackle the growing number of road traffic deaths while eliminating human interference in traffic law enforcement.
Speaking during a courtesy call on the Upper East Regional Minister, Mr. Akamugri Donatus Atanga, in Bolgatanga as part of a nationwide stakeholder engagement tour, Mr. Amaliba expressed concern over the increasing number of fatalities on Ghana’s roads.
“We are aware of the rise in fatalities, and the numbers don’t look good. More people are dying through road traffic accidents than what happened during COVID. It appears we are not giving so much attention to road crashes,” he said.
A key component of the reforms is the implementation of Legislative Instrument (LI) 2519, which will make it mandatory for vehicle owners to subscribe to towing services through either a towing company or an insurance provider.
According to Mr. Amaliba, the policy is intended to ensure that broken-down vehicles are removed promptly from roads to prevent accidents caused by stationary vehicles.
“We have noticed that stationary vehicles, when they break down, have caused so many accidents and increased the fatality rate. Immediately your car breaks down, you call your insurance company or your towing company to remove it. If that fails, we will remove it and surcharge you,” he explained.
The Authority also plans to introduce the Traffic Tech system, which will use speed cameras mounted on highways, patrol vehicles and tripods to automatically detect traffic offences such as speeding and jumping red traffic lights.
Under the system, offenders will receive text messages containing a three-second video of the offence before being required to pay the applicable penalty.
Mr. Amaliba disclosed that the Authority would spend the next six months embarking on nationwide public education and sensitisation ahead of the full implementation of the technology-driven enforcement regime in 2027.
Other reforms include intensified public education campaigns on road safety, stricter enforcement of helmet use among motorcyclists and the designation of Regional Ministers and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives as Road Safety Ambassadors to champion road safety initiatives across the country.
The Upper East Regional Minister welcomed the reforms, describing innovation as essential to addressing the country’s persistent road safety challenges.
He pledged the Regional Coordinating Council’s support for the implementation of the new initiatives and urged influential individuals to desist from interfering with traffic law enforcement.
Mr. Atanga also appealed to the NRSA to facilitate the repair of faulty traffic lights in Bolgatanga, Navrongo, Sandema and Bawku to improve road safety and support security operations.
He identified the low rate of helmet use among motorcyclists in the region as a major contributor to road fatalities and called for stronger enforcement to complement ongoing public education efforts.
As part of the stakeholder engagement tour, the NRSA delegation also paid courtesy calls on the Bolgatanga Municipal Chief Executive and the Ghana Police Service and visited Sumbrungu-Anateem, one of the region’s identified road crash hotspots.
