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23.04.2014 Editorial

Sustain campaign against illegal speed humps

By Daily Graphic
Sustain campaign against illegal speed humps
23.04.2014 LISTEN

These speed humps constructed by communities along major highways to ostensibly check speeding have rather, on a number of occasions, been the contributory factor for road accidents.

The Minister of Roads and Highways, Alhaji Amin Amidu Sulemana, has directed the Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) to remove all such illegal speed humps from the country's highways, as they have become deadly traps.

But those communities cannot be blamed for the speed hump phenomenon, as motorists have flagrantly refused to abide by road traffic regulations.

In some of these communities, the people were very upset with speeding drivers who knocked down people regularly and when the road authority would not heed their calls for speed controls, they decided to just heap sand on sections of the roads.

Recently, the Daily Graphic carried pictures of speed humps constructed by the people of Addokope, near the Ada Junction, to check hit-and-run drivers on that portion of the trans-African Highway.

While we commend the Ministry of Roads and Highways for taking steps to remove the 'killer humps', we ought to draw attention to the slow response to the request from communities for speed humps.

The Daily Graphic thinks that it will be a huge strain on the budget of the road authority if it decides to construct speed humps in all communities along highways.

That is why the authorities must whip drivers into line to keep to the speed limit of 50km in communities, so that the people will not be compelled to construct their own speed humps to discourage speeding drivers.

There is another dimension to the free-for-all attitude to the construction of the speed humps. These illegal speed humps also damage roads constructed at the taxpayer's expense, as well as impede the safety of the motoring public.

The construction of illegal speed humps is not limited to a few roads in the country. It has become a national problem that must be addressed with all the authority of the state and those found guilty brought to book.

We then ask whether the minister will continue in this moral crusade to appeal to the conscience of the people who are involved in constructing the speed humps and drivers who exceed the speed limit.

The Daily Graphic is aware that this is not the first time the Ministry of Roads and Highways is embarking on a crusade like this to restore sanity on the roads. Unfortunately, these initiatives become a nine days' wonder.

We appeal to the Ministry of Roads and Highways and its agencies to sustain this exercise and get all these 'killer humps' removed.

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