The Institute for Liberty and Policy Innovation has urged the Ghana Police Service and the handlers of the TraffiTech-GH automated traffic enforcement system to immediately halt the practice of using concealed mobile speed cameras on major roads across the country.
The policy think tank contends that hiding speed-monitoring units inside unmarked vehicles completely defeats the fundamental purpose of traffic policing, transforming what ought to be a life-saving safety intervention into a revenue-generation scheme.
Reflecting on the current deployment strategy of the authorities, the Executive Director for the Institute for Liberty and Policy Innovation, Peter Bismark, noted that state institutions consistently prioritize revenue mobilization over genuine public safety and business facilitation. He observed that the enthusiasm displayed by law enforcement officers during arrests highlights a worrying systemic preference for punishment rather than protection.
According to Mr Bismark, the primary objective of any traffic enforcement initiative must remain accident prevention rather than post-incident punishment. He explained that visible traffic cameras, accompanied by clear advance warning signage, establish an immediate deterrent effect that forces drivers to act responsibly on high-risk highways and intersections.
When motorists spot a camera or a warning sign, they instinctively check their speedometers and slow down, creating an instant safety zone around dangerous stretches of road.
“Conversely, a hidden camera acts as a passive observer to danger,” Mr Bismark stated. “A speeding driver passes a concealed camera completely unaware, continuing their reckless trajectory down the road. If that driver causes a fatal crash five kilometers later, the hidden camera did nothing to prevent the tragedy; it merely recorded the prelude to it.”
He added that receiving an SMS notification of a fine minutes or days after an infraction offers a delayed remedy for an immediate threat to human life.
The policy institute is therefore calling on the police administration and TraffiTech-GH operators to rethink their strategy by deploying conspicuous warning signage and making speed cameras fully visible to motorists across the country.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
