NRSC to introduce speed cameras this year
The National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) will introduce a speed camera system this year as part of efforts to reduce road accidents.This will be done in collaboration with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) and the Motor Transport and Traffic Department (MTTD) of the Police Service to monitor speeding on the highways.
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Familiarisation visit
The Chief Executive Officer of the NRSC, Mrs May Obiri-Yeboah, disclosed this when the Deputy Minister of Transport, Mr Daniel Nii Kwartei Titus-Glover, visited the commission’s office in Accra last Wednesday.
He used the opportunity to familiarise himself with the staff of the NRSC and their operations.
Mrs Obiri-Yeboah said the pilot of the speed camera system would be done in the Greater Accra Region and later duplicated in the other regions.
She emphasised that it was the mandate of the NRSC to do everything possible to reduce road accidents and said "this system will enable us to track drivers speeding on our roads because there is no human interference, and when a driver is caught, the person can be traced for prosecution or the payment of a fine."
Other projects
Talking about other projects the commission would embark on this year, Mrs Obiri-Yeboah said a drivers academy would be opened later this year, where drivers would be schooled on how to use the road and avoid accidents.
She said there would also be a campaign on motorcycling to reduce the number of deaths resulting from it.
Responding to the issues and the projects outlined, Mr Titus-Glover lauded the idea of the introduction of speed cameras and called for the street naming exercise to be done right, as that would help to achieve the objective of installing the cameras.
He said issues including speeding, wrongful overtaking and overloading also needed to be looked at to bring discipline on the road.
“The commission is doing a great work, despite its inadequate resources and staff. They can do better when we address their challenges,” he noted.
He hinted that there would be a stakeholder meeting to find measures to address some of the issues and challenges of the commission to enable it to work more effectively.
Mr Titus-Glover urged the media and other stakeholders to get involved in public education to reduce road accidents this year.