A driving instructor believes it is a “miracle” that there have not been ‘major accidents’ in Accra due to the faded road markings.
The markings are so faint such that it is impossible to identify them on the road surface – it is the silent yet treacherous danger on major roads across the capital, Accra.
You probably may not share the worrying sentiments or appreciate the concerns until it strikes you.
Poor road engineering, absence of streetlights and traffic lights, and behavioural risk driving are but a few of the many struggles plaguing road safety in Ghana.
It has been a danger in the waiting, one that threatens the lives of road users and pedestrians.
They have faded or are mostly invisible, increasing the risk of road crashes, especially in the night.
Several factors contribute to road crashes in Ghana, one being faded road markings. They are an important element of road infrastructure.
They are a key visual guide for road users and warn road users in case they are about to veer off their lanes when driving.
The road markings also signal motorists to either avoid overtaking or slow down at specific portions of the road.
But the maintenance of road markings has been poor, increasingly exposing road users and pedestrians to danger.
Transport consultant, Marshall Mensah Kwadzo Bobobee, observes the issue of faded road markings is one of a ticking tomb and needs urgent fix.
“The absence of road markings on the road makes it very difficult for drivers to stay in their lanes. We call something lane discipline – it has to do with you driving in your lane. Assuming you are on a two-way traffic, you are supposed to maintain your lane and leave the other for the oncoming vehicle,” he told TV3’s Christian Yalley in an interview.
According to him, there is a dying need for periodic remarking of the lines as they hold a crucial role in road safety.
“There are some [of the markings] that give us guidelines or give us information that ‘maintain this lane if you are going straight or take this lane if you are going right or take this lane if you are making a U-turn. There are some that give us restriction or prohibiton; they us not to do something,” Marshall added.
Pedestrian deaths account for nearly 36 percent of all road traffic accidents on a yearly basis.
This has been attributed to unsafe intersections among other conditions such as the faded markings.
“The road markings are supposed to last for about two years and so usually when road construction takes place, it is part of the contract – they do it as part of the road makeup. But over the 24-month period, they fade out,” he lamented.
At night or when it rains, these road marking are virtually invisible and it is even deadlier in areas where there are non-functioning streetlights.
It is a raging public concern, one that touches the souls of many Ghanaians, and needs urgent attention.
I took a ride in the night across the capital Accra and spotted few reflectors on some roads.
And it is worth a mention that some road networks have well-marked lines.
“It is about time we took our road maintenance seriously because if we don’t remark the roads after two years as experts say, the dangers are a lot and we are all road users. It doesn’t matter whether you are driving today or you are walking or you are riding,” Marhsall Bobobee highlighted.
Were such periodic inspections to be carried out, the faded markings would have been noticed and something done about them.
It is ironic that when factors accounting for accidents on our roads are being discussed, the faded markings and how these contribute to mishaps do not crop up.
Reckless overtaking, over-speeding although responsible, for most accidents, are by no means the only factors responsible for these.
With the markings absent, drivers are prone to miss zebra crossings, switch lanes wrongly and crash pedestrians.
Indeed, the risks caused by the faded markings are enormous. The status quo cannot continue to allow to endanger motorists as though those in charge do not appreciate the implications of the anomaly.
Here lies a raging concern for adequate investment towards sustainable road infrastructure across the country.