The Motor Vehicle Accident Fund has appealed to road users to exercise extra vigilance when travelling to their various destinations over the coming Heroes Day long weekend.
MVA Fund’s Chief of Corporate Affairs, Surihe Gaomas-Guchu, in a statement Tuesday said the countrywide easing of COVID-19 restrictions and upcoming Heroes Day long weekend present opportunities for celebrations and travelling to various destinations and thus signal an anticipated increase in road traffic volumes.
“The MVA Fund, therefore, cautions all road users to exercise extra vigilance when using the road,” she said.
According to the fund’s road crash statistics, five lives were lost and 65 persons sustained varying degrees of injury in 40 crashes during the previous Heroes Day long weekend.
“As a nation dealing with the devastating effects of COVID-19, we should all do our part to reduce the burden on already limited resources. Thus, the trauma associated with road crashes can be reduced if every road user pledges to be responsible and safe,” added Gaomas-Guchu.
MVA Fund reminded motorists to make road safety a priority, practice safe road user behaviour, and plan their journey, inspect vehicle tyres to make sure these are in good condition and well inflated.
Gaomas-Guchu also advised motorists to conduct pre-trip inspections to ensure roadworthiness, ensure all passengers including children are well restrained, take regular breaks on long journeys and switch drivers if possible, keep within prescribed speed limits while practising self-policing when on the road.
“MVA Fund wishes all road users a safe and heroic long weekend and urges the public to laud the efforts of all road safety heroes in their community. Let us recognise the people that exemplify good road-user behaviour and who are part of promoting road safety in our communities. Their efforts will go a long way in making sure that we achieve a road crash-free Namibia that we envision for by 2030,” she said.
Source: Namibia Press Agency