Participants at the event
The Ghana Police Service is leaving no stone unturned to ensure increase in motorists’ compliance with road traffic laws and regulations to help reduce road traffic fatalities drastically.
The Police Service is therefore set to rollout an automated system to effectively enforce road traffic laws and regulations in the country.
The innovative technology-driven automated system is to help elevate driver safety and enforce strict adherence to traffic regulations.
The Deputy Western Regional Police Commander, ACP Dr. Francis Kwame Tsidi, who disclosed this revealed that the initiative is in collaboration with the Driver Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), the Ghana Road Safety Commission and the National Insurance Commission.
He noted that the police have been exploring the best way to help reduce road traffic fatalities and believed that the introduction of the new system, known as ‘Traffitech-GH’ would help improve road safety in the country.
Launching the technology in Takoradi, the Director of Education, Research and Training at the MTTD of the Ghana Police Service, Chief Superintendent Alexander Kwaku Obeng, explained how the system works.
He said the automated system, Traffitech-GH uses cameras and sonsors to automatically take a picture or video of vehicles that flout road traffic laws and regulations such as speeding and jumping of red light.
He indicated that under the new technology, fixed or mobile vehicles with radar guns would be deployed to capture among others speeding vehicles and those that jump red lights.
He said, “So under this system, drivers will no longer face routine stops by police officers on highways”.
“Instead, any violations and corresponding penalties will be communicated directly to drivers through Short Message Service (SMS).
Chief Inspector Obeng emphasized that among the major aims of the innovation was to ensure that motorists cultivate a culture of adherence to road traffic laws and regulations.
He added that other traffic offences that will be enforced under traffitech-GH are expired road worthiness, certificate, wrongful overtaking, non-usage of seat belts, use of mobile phones while driving and use of expired license among others.
Western Regional chairman of the Ghana Private Road and Transport Union, Joseph Simons Cudjoe, applauded the police for the initiative.
He was hopeful that the new system would encourage and promote compliance of road traffic regulations on the part of drivers to help reduce road traffic crashes.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi