The Upper East Region has been given new traffic lighting systems and with the old malfunctioning ones replaced.
Drivers and motorists in the Bolgatanga Municipality, who hitherto drove through major streets in the township without control, can once again enjoy well organised traffic flow as vantage points are fixed with traffic lights.
The Regional capital, Bolgatanga, used to have traffic lights only at link roads near the offices of the Ghana News Agency (GNA) and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), the Municipal Police station, the MTN main office and the Bank of Africa link roads, which often broke down, sometimes without repair for several years.
The scarce traffic lights situation had over the years caused several road traffic accidents, especially on link roads at the offices of the GNA, SSNIT, link roads at the Regional hospital roundabout near the office of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC).
Over the past weeks, the GNA observed that old traffic lights were replaced with new sets of traffic lights, while the roads at the Regional hospital roundabout and GBC were fixed with new sets of light.
It would be recalled that the Minister of Roads and Highways, Mr Kwasi Amoako-Atta, gave the assurance in June this year, when he paid a working visit to the Region, that new sets of traffic lights would be fixed in the three Municipalities of the Region, while all malfunctioning ones in the Bolgatanga township would be fixed to reduce road traffic accidents.
“We have selected several traffic lights in Bolgatanga, Bawku and Navrongo and we are mounting five traffic lights in Bolgatanga, three in Bawku and two in Navrongo,” the Minister said at the time of his visit.
The situation was not different at Navrongo in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality, when the GNA visited the Municipality, as new sets of traffic lighting systems were fixed at link roads near the Navrongo Central Prison.
Some road users who spoke to the GNA said the need for traffic lights was long overdue, adding that with the existence of the traffic lights, there would be order on the roads.
Mr Abdul Wahab Nsoh, a motorbike owner in the Bolgatanga Municipality, said “The traffic lights on our roads are good, especially the ones around the hospital roundabout will prevent the numerous road crashes we have seen over the years.”
Mr Ernest Bugri, a staff of GBC said the initiative to mount traffic lights near his office, which had about four link roads would prevent vehicles from criss-crossing each other and avoid terrible accidents.
A Driver with the Lesken Construction Company Limited, Mr Jawad Mohammed who was waiting at the traffic lights near the Navrongo Central Prison, observed that most motorists in the Municipality by-passed the red light.
“It looks like some people are not used to the traffic lights and ride across even when the light is red. This behaviour is dangerous,” he said.
