By: Seraphine Nyuiemedi
The Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service in collaboration with the National Road Safety Authority has held a day’s sensitisation forum for stakeholders in the Volta and Oti Regions on the newly introduced technology Traffitech-GH.
Traffitech-GH is an automated system developed by the Ghana Police Service to enforce road traffic laws and regulations to improve road safety in the country.
The Director of Education, Research and Training at the Motor Traffic and Transport Department, Chief Superintendent Alexander Kwaku Obeng said the system will help address the increasing and preventable road crashes in the country.
The automated developed system uses cameras and sensors to take a picture and/or video of vehicles that flout road traffic laws such as speeding, jumping red lights, wrongful overtaking, non-use of seatbelts, use of mobile phones while driving, abuse of siren among others.
It works by deploying fixed, mobile/ in-vehicle and radar gun devices to capture the offence and automatically transmits it to a back office for validation.
Chief Superintendent, Obeng said the vehicle owner will be notified of the offence by SMS and the necessary actions to be taken.
He said Perpetrators will be fined an amount between 120 cedis and 240 cedis, while severe cases will be referred to court.
The Acting Director General of the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), David Osafo Adonteng said the initiative, which is a shift from manual to automation, is in line with the country’s digitisation policy and commended the Inspector General of Police for bringing it forth.
He said Traffitech-GH will inure to public safety on the road as most of the crashes recorded were as a result of indiscipline on the part of road users, particularly drivers.
On his part, the Volta Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Andrews Boadu-Ekumah said though the police is mandated to enforce laws and regulations, road users must also conform to the rules and regulations to make the enforcement easier for the police.
He said when road users failed to comply, there will be disorder, lawlessness and rampant incident of road crashes and its associated deaths and injuries. He believes Traffitech- GH will complement and enhance the enforcement of road traffic laws and regulations.
He urged the public to assist the police in ensuring safety on the road to save lives.
Other stakeholders included, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), the National Insurance Commission (NIC) among others.