Between Darkness and Danger: The Road Safety Crisis on the Navrongo Route in Kassena-Nankana Municipality

As road crashes claim thousands of lives in Ghana, residents and road users along the CKT‑UTAS–Navrongo stretch in the Upper East Region say urgent action is needed to make their daily journeys safer.

For residents, students, traders, pedestrians, and motorists who use the CKT‑UTAS–Navrongo stretch every day, the journey to school, work, the market, or home is increasingly becoming a gamble. Poor lighting, reckless driving, congestion, and damaged sections of the road are turning routine journeys into potentially dangerous trips, where a moment of recklessness, poor visibility, or confusion at a busy junction could have devastating consequences.

For me as the writer of this piece, after observing the situation, I realized that it was very disastrous. As motorcycles weave through traffic, tricycles compete for space with cars, pedestrians navigate narrow road edges, and traders operate close to the roadside, the risks are becoming difficult to ignore. Recent accidents along the stretch have renewed calls for urgent interventions, with residents, traders, students, pedestrians, and commercial transport operators pointing to poor lighting, reckless driving, improper parking, congestion, and deteriorating sections of the road as factors putting lives at risk.

For those who use the route regularly, road safety is no longer an abstract national concern. It is a daily reality. Their concerns come at a time when Ghana’s road safety crisis continues to claim lives on a worrying scale. Data from the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) show that 2,949 people were killed in 14,743 reported road crashes across the country in 2025, while 16,714 people sustained injuries. The 2025 fatalities represented an 18.2 per cent increase over the 2,494 deaths recorded in 2024. Pedestrian knockdowns also increased by seven per cent to 2,561.

The statistics give national weight to what road users in Navrongo say they experience locally: road safety requires more than caution from individual motorists. It also demands safer infrastructure, effective traffic management, responsible road use, and sustained enforcement.

For roadside trader Moses, the danger becomes particularly visible on market days when the volume of people and vehicles rises sharply.

“Recently, there was an accident last week Friday,” Moses said. “On market days, the road becomes very busy. The area is not well lit, and with many people moving around, it becomes difficult to control the situation. Sometimes we have to call the police to help manage the traffic.”

He said the narrow nature of the road further compounds the problem, particularly when traders, pedestrians, motorcycles, tricycles, and other vehicles converge on the same limited space.

The situation, according to Moses, becomes even more challenging as people move between different parts of the community, including areas around the hospital, adding to the pressure on the road.

His account reflects a broader challenge confronting Ghana’s road safety effort. Although road users are often urged to drive carefully, the safety of a journey is also shaped by the physical environment in which people travel. A poorly lit road, an obstructed shoulder, inadequate traffic control, or a damaged section can create conditions in which a simple mistake can quickly become a serious accident.

A commercial tricycle operator, Michael—popularly known as Big Mike—believes road users must also accept responsibility for their own actions.

“Sometimes people park recklessly on the roadside where they are not supposed to park,” he said. “Reckless riding and driving can put the lives of innocent people at risk.”

As someone who spends much of his working day on the road, Big Mike said adherence to basic safety measures could help reduce the risk of crashes.

“When you are riding, you have to wear your helmet and know your speed limits,” he said. “This is a busy road, so you need to slow down whenever you are using this stretch.”

His call for responsible behaviour aligns with concerns raised by road safety authorities about the role of human behaviour in Ghana’s road crash crisis. The NRSA has identified reckless driving and overspeeding as major contributors to the rise in crashes, while stressing that road safety is a shared responsibility between road users and other stakeholders.

For Elijah, another regular user of the route, the message is equally simple: slow down and protect lives.

“It is very important to wear a helmet while riding because it protects you,” Elijah said. “Even if you fall from a motorbike, a helmet can help you survive. We also need to reduce speeding.”

But safety, he argues, cannot depend entirely on the behaviour of individual road users.

While acknowledging the importance of the route to transportation and economic activity, Elijah said poor traffic management and damaged portions of the road continue to create difficulties.

“Sometimes the traffic situation works and sometimes it does not,” he said. “Vehicles come from different directions, and it becomes difficult to know who has the right way. This creates confusion and can lead to accidents.”

He is particularly concerned about the condition of the road around the entrance to the CKT‑UTAS Navrongo station.

“The road is not in good condition, especially around the entrance to our station,” Elijah said. “People can easily fall there. We need the authorities to help fix the road to reduce the accidents happening every day.”

A National Crisis Reflecting in Local Context

Ghana’s road safety figures suggest that the concerns emerging from Navrongo form part of a much larger national challenge.

In 2024 alone, the country recorded 13,489 road traffic crashes, resulting in 2,494 deaths and 15,607 injuries. By the first half of 2025, the NRSA had already recorded 7,289 crashes, 1,504 fatalities, and 8,300 injuries, with an average of eight people reportedly losing their lives every day through road crashes during that period.

These figures are not merely numbers. Behind each statistic is a family that loses a breadwinner, a student whose education is disrupted, a worker who becomes permanently disabled, or a community forced to live with the consequences of a preventable tragedy.

The burden is also particularly significant for vulnerable road users. A 2025 report on road fatalities in Accra and Kumasi found that pedestrians, motorbike riders, and bicyclists accounted for 86 per cent of reported road traffic fatalities in the two cities in 2024.

For communities such as Navrongo—where pedestrians, motorcycle users, and tricycle operators share busy roads with other vehicles—the lesson is clear: road safety must consider everyone who uses the road, not only those behind the steering wheel.

Road Accidents in Perspective with SDGs

The concerns surrounding the Navrongo route also speak directly to the global commitment to safer and more sustainable communities.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3, which focuses on Good Health and Well‑being, includes a specific road safety target under SDG 3.6, while SDG 11.2 calls for safe, affordable, accessible, and sustainable transport systems for all, with particular attention to vulnerable groups.

The condition of a road, therefore, is not simply a question of convenience. It is connected to public health, economic productivity, education, mobility, and the broader quality of life of communities.

For a student travelling to class, a trader transporting goods to market, a patient trying to reach a health facility, or a worker returning home, a safe road is essential infrastructure.

That is why residents believe the response to the challenges on the Navrongo route should go beyond temporary interventions following accidents. They are calling for sustained road maintenance, improved street lighting, effective traffic management, better control of roadside parking, and stronger enforcement of road safety regulations.

There is also a need for continuous public education, particularly targeting motorists, motorcycle and tricycle operators, pedestrians, and young people who use the route daily.

A Call for Action

The residents’ concerns raise an important question: how many accidents must occur before preventive action is taken? For those who use the road every day, the answer should not be another accident.

They want authorities to examine the most vulnerable points along the route, improve lighting, repair damaged sections, manage traffic more effectively, and ensure that road users comply with safety regulations.

At the same time, motorists and riders must recognise that safer roads require safer behaviour. Speeding, reckless overtaking, improper parking, and failure to use helmets can turn an already risky environment into a deadly one. The challenge, therefore, is shared.

As Ghana struggles with a rising road safety crisis, the experience of road users around the CKT‑UTAS Navrongo station offers a reminder that national statistics often begin with local realities. Every crash prevented on a community road is a life potentially saved; every damaged section repaired is a risk reduced; and every responsible road user contributes to a safer transport system.

For the thousands of people who depend on the Navrongo route for their daily activities, the message is straightforward: a journey to school, work, the market, or home should not be a test of survival. A safer road is not a luxury. It is a necessity—and a fundamental part of building the inclusive, healthy, and sustainable communities envisioned by the SDGs.

The writer is a Level 200 ——— student of the Marketing and Communication Department, Bolgatanga Technical University.

   Comments0