The National Road Safety Authority(NRSA) says it will deploy undercover operatives to check compliance with safety regulations on commercial vehicles.
These undercover operatives will board commercial vehicles as passengers to monitor transport operators.
This was contained in a regulatory alert to all commercial transport operators on the enforcement of the use of log books in intercity relay driving.
According to the Director, Regulation, Inspection and Compliance at NRSA, Kwame Koduah Atuahene, the operatives will be placed on various highways across the country as the festive season approaches.
He said the undercover operatives will monitor “driver behaviour and provide the authority with real-time feedback.”
“For many of these routes, the Authority intends to deploy mystery passengers – these are guys who join the trips ununiformed…once we have confirmation that something untoward has happened, we will act on such evidence received from our mystery passengers,” he indicated.
Mr Atuahene added that NRSA would work in collaboration with the Ghana Police Service to ensure the success of the initiative.
This initiative is aimed at reducing road accidents recorded on various highways annually.
A total of 1,443 persons lost their lives in road crashes between January and July 2022, the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) has revealed.
Meanwhile, the NSRA has revealed that more than 200 people die monthly in road accidents in Ghana.
This was disclosed by the Acting Director General of the NRSA, Mr Davis Osafo Adonteng, on Wednesday, September 21, 2022.
Mr Adonteng said the figure was for a period between January 1, 2022, and August 31, 2022, which accounted for 1,600 deaths.
He stated that the figure represents a 16% decrease compared to the same period in 2021, which recorded 1,800 deaths.
The Director General stated that most accidents are caused mainly by wrongful overtaking and over-speeding by some drivers.
He added that fatigue was also another factor that caused carnage on the roads.
To reduce the carnage, Mr Adonteng maintained that reducing over-speeding, over-taking and reckless driving is the only way out.