AMA to Widen Pedestrian Curbs At Lapaz

The Chief Executive Officer of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Mohammed Adjei Sowah has announced that it will widen the pedestrian curbs of the Lapaz intersection on the George Walker Bush Highway (N1) next year, to enhance safety of pedestrians.

At the launch of the Pedestrian Road Safety Action Plan in Accra on Wednesday, he said AMA under the Partnership for Healthy Cities, is determined to change the narrative about the intersection.

Lapaz intersection is currently identified as the site with the highest road crashes in the City, however the AMA has introduced strategies to make the road safe to pedestrians.

The Mayor pointed out that one of the Assembly’s primary goal is to improve the quality of life of people living within the city by ensuring the availability of proper road infrastructure to ensure safety and enhance movement of all road users.

“This is especially critical for vulnerable road users including children, the elderly, physically challenged persons, bicyclists and motor riders,” he stressed.

According him, the AMA and the Motor Transport and Traffic Directorate (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service, recently launched an anti-drunk driving campaign for all drivers not to “drink and  drive” and cautioned them to comply with the directive.

“MTTD taskforce and the Assembly’s Metro Guards  equipped with gadgets donated by Bloomberg Philanthropies would be deployed throughout the season and beyond to keep the streets safe and expressed commitment to work to make Accra safe for all road users”, he stressed.

A Representative of the Department of Urban Roads (DUR), Engineer Pat Onny,  in a remark said the vision of the department was to attain efficient cost, effective and sustainable integrated urban road transport system that was responsive to the needs of society and pedestrians to have their safety needs met.

She mentioned that pedestrian safety was a collective responsibility, and expressed the department’s commitments to collaborate with other stakeholders to improve pedestrian safety.

“Urban Roads ensures that road safety audits are carried out and recommendations on the needs of all users, including pedestrians are implemented to minimize crashes,” she said.

She touched on some challenges facing the Department after construction of the transports systems .These are the encroachment and the lack of enforcement of the facilities.

“On our roads to mention a few, we see walkways littered with concrete blocks, billboards hawking activities. We have advertising banners on all our pedestrian railing that have been installed as a visi-rail defeating it designed purpose”. She emphasized.

By: Emmanuel Yeboah Britwum/ thePublisher