A total of 134 have perished in road accidents while 380 sustained serious injuries nationwide in the last 2 weeks and this has been caused mainly by vehicles which are in dangerous mechanical conditions. These were from the 705 road crashes that happened during that period.
This was reveal by the traffic police spokesperson ASP Faridah Nampiima while addressing journalists in a weekly press briefing at Naguru based police Headquarters on Monday 30, January, 2033.
Nampiima said that the major cause of rampant road accidents are among others, people who driving dangerous mechanical conditioned vehicles which at times even breaks in the middle of roads and other motorists ram into them. The other causes are drink driving were she noted that people since the halting of cracking on drinking driving, motorists are taking it for granted some now even drive with a bottle of beer in their hands.
The other is reckless driving where motorists do not follow road cautions and signs this causing negligence which eventually leads accidents and loss of lives.
“Accidents have increased since police halted the cracking down of the drink driving motorist. Now motorists are taking it for granted and have even started moving with bottles of liqueurs and drink while driving on roads”. ASP Nampiima noted.
She further said that due to the outbreak of Covid-19 in the country, the Ministry of health advised police the operations on cracking down of drinking motorist because the circumstances in which it was being done was going to cause the rapid spread of the disease.
Mayanja John a taxi driver along Hoima road attributes the rampant accidents in the country to reckless driving and drivers who occasionally go on routes they are not well acquainted with.
He says most roads are bumpy have got potholes, besides the corners and bumps and if someone is new on the road he/ she may not be aware where there is a bump of a sharp corner while driving at a very high speed get ram into another or in the process of trying to read the speed upon realising that she/he reaching a sharp bend that is when the vehicle ramps into another.
The polices spokesperson also informed reporters that traffic police arrested a total of 28,795 traffic offenders and out of these, 12,385 had no driving permits , 3732 were driving vehicles in dangerous mechanical conditions while 1 487 had did have third party insurance on their vehicles.
A total of 2,854 were charged with reckless driving, 1010 had not fastened their seat belts, 823 were caught over speeding while 1089 motor cycle riders had not put on helmets and all these offenders were issued with fine tickets.
Mean while traffic police have also impounded a total of 6017 motor cycles in its operation of cracking down on motor cycle riders without a licence 0r driving permit and out of these impounded, 5,052 were issued with fine tickets and returned to the owners.
By George Bukenya