Abofour Residents Decry Deadly Traffic Crisis; Emergency Patients Trapped For Hours On Market Days

Abofour in the Offinso South Municipality of the Ashanti Region is facing a worsening road crisis as deteriorating roads, potholes and indiscriminate siting of containers and shops along the main road continue to endanger lives.

Residents say the situation has become a major death trap for motorists and pedestrians, with huge and uncontrollable traffic, especially during emergency referrals.

According to concerned residents and drivers, patients who are being transferred for emergency medical care often remain stuck in traffic for more than an hour, a situation they describe as life-threatening.

The problem is even worse on Thursdays, which are market days in Abofour. On such days, the inner roads become heavily congested, making movement within the town nearly impossible.

They bemoaned that potholes on the main road slow down vehicular movement and contribute significantly to the traffic buildup, while the narrow nature of the road makes it difficult for ambulances and other emergency vehicles to pass.

Residents are therefore making a passionate appeal to Government, the Offinso South Municipal Assembly and the Department of Urban Roads to urgently rehabilitate the road and fix the potholes.

They are also appealing to Nananom and landowners in the area to desist from selling roadside lands for containers and shops too close to the road.

According to them, some of the containers and shops are sited right on the edge of the road and do not deserve to be there, as they block visibility, narrow the road and worsen congestion.

They want authorities to enforce strict regulations and ensure that a reasonable distance is maintained between the road and any container or shop to allow free flow of traffic and ensure safety.

They appealled that if nothing is done immediately, the situation could lead to more avoidable deaths, especially when emergency cases are delayed in traffic.