Friday, March 29, 2024

Zambian Road Safety Trust worried about safety at construction sites

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A section of Kafue road under construction in Lusaka.
A section of Kafue road under construction in Lusaka.

The Zambian Road Safety Trust (ZRST) says it is concerned with the safety of road users and workers around road construction zones.

ZRST made the concern in Lusaka yesterday in a statement made available to ZANIS through its Chairman Daniel Mwamba.

Mr Mwamba said the increased infrastructure spending and funding for road construction by the government has led to a significant increase in the number of road construction projects around Zambia.

He said this in reference to the accident that occurred on Wednesday, 22nd April, 2015, where three foreign visiting doctors from German and a local TV journalist died in a road accident when their vehicle collided with a construction vehicle in Southern Province.

Mr Mwamba explained that German Doctors Franz Mathews, 67, Wolfgufkart Bissbeif, 64, Hans Boehringer, 55 and journalist Priscilla Phakati were heading to a rural health center where they were scheduled to attend and help the local people with dental problems when they met their fate.

He said the accident should be a wake-up call that road construction zones and construction vehicles present a deadly hazard for motorists.

Mr Mwamba said ZRST is also deeply concerned about lack of adequate safety on construction works going on along Chilimbulu and Burma Roads in Lusaka by the Chinese contractors and urges Road Development Agency (RDA) to make its own assessment before other people are injured.

He further said the long stretches of under construction and widespread traffic congestion are a recipe for extreme driving hazards for motorists and road workers alike.

Mr Mwamba said the Trust is calling on RDA to implement sufficient safety measures and initiatives in all construction zones by ensuring that construction or maintenance zones have road signs to warn motorists that road work is being done.

Mr Mwamba further said RDA should also implement tough penalties on constructors who do not provide enough safety around construction sites.

“Any incident is one too many, appropriate safety measures are absolutely imperative around all construction or maintenance zones. When someone is hurt or killed, families are impacted. We cannot afford to lose more lives. Road death is the number one killer in Zambia for all health and productive people, “Mr Mwamba said.

3 COMMENTS

  1. The above picture tells you about safety issues in Zambia. Where are the safely signs? Where are the so called devil’s safety hats which are supposed to divide the road with temporary driving lanes? Where are the speed signs? This is what happens when contracts are awarded through corruption.

    • Who cares about safety of others? RTSA officials are arrogant and out to drive posh cars and show off. RDA is corrupt to the teeth to bite as much as they can from the contractors. Insurance companies do not give it a damn whether good risk mitigation practices are followed or not. Government ministers have no time from their hands dipped in hot steaks. Shut up and let 2016 usher in HH for all to see the way government is run. These Chinese, Indian, European and South Africans will change overnight. Zambians will have a minimum of 60% participation in each project. Read UPND manifestor

  2. The safety standards for workers on the roads and the road users have extremely been low in zambia for very long long time. Did we have to wait till foreigners from the so called first world to died because of poor safety standards on our roads for us to work up? It’s a shame and the best Daniel Mwamba should have done would have been keeping quiet and work things for the better. There is no need rushing to the media as if it’s the media or the public who are to blame or who can change things.

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