Passengers should ensure drivers adhere to road safety laws – GPRTU

Passengers have been advised to ensure that drivers adhere to road safety regulations before, during and after the Easter festivities to promote safety and curb road crash incidents.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Mr Godfred Abulbire Adogma, General Secretary, of Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), said passengers must call out drivers for lawless behaviour, and in severe cases, report them to the Police.

He said as part of the initiatives from the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), passengers have now been empowered to act as syndicates to report reckless driving by drivers of the vehicles they board.

“Before a vehicle sets off, an announcement will be made to passengers regarding their rights and responsibilities in ensuring safety throughout the trip. Since the announcement is made in the driver’s presence, he will drive carefully because he knows that the passengers have been empowered to check him.”

“In the middle of the journey, a driver may decide to stop midway through the journey to grab a drink in a spot or flout some safety precautions. At that time, there were no police or road safety authority to enforce discipline. It rests on the passengers to demand that the driver does the right thing,” he said.

The General Secretary said the Union, together with the NRSA had begun implementing pre-departure checks at various transport terminals to ensure that both vehicles and drivers are ready for departure.

“The new directive from the NRSA is to take direct punitive decisions or actions against stakeholders refusing to comply with the safety modules provided, key amongst them being the pre-departure checks. Thus, before a vehicle embarks on a journey, we check for the vehicle’s roadworthiness, whether the driver is fit and alcohol-free, the presence of a second driver, amongst others,” he said.

Mr Adogma said the Union was also insisting on a mandatory subscription to a National Towing Policy to ensure quick removal of faulty vehicles from roads by calling toll-free numbers.

He said the Union was championing a “no subscription, no loading” campaign at their terminals to encourage drivers to subscribe to an online application developed to effectively deliver the service.

The General Secretary said drivers would pay a yearly fee of GH¢50.00 for Taxis, GH¢80.00 for “Trotros”, GH¢300.00 for air-conditioned Coaches and GH¢500.00 for articulated trucks to be renewed after expiration.

He wished all Christians a fruitful Easter celebration adding that, it was his hope that the season would be free of road crashes.