Analysis of Causes and Consequences of Road Traffic Accidents: The Case of Gamo Gofa Zone, Southern Ethiopia

Abstract

Transport systems provide mobility, access and other benefits such as facilitating the productivity of the other sectors of the economy. However, it also the main causes fatalities, injuries and property damage. This needs proper management of the system. The objective of this study was to find out the causes and the consequences of road traffic accident in Gamo Gofa Zone. For this end the questionnaire was distributed to 324 respondents and also the interview was conducted to passengers, officers and personal observations were implemented. Further road accident-related traffic police and transport and road development department as the secondary sources and the simple random sampling was used. The analysis was done by employing descriptive statistics. The results accomplished from the descriptive analysis were shown that a combination of different factors and actors in the transport sector has massively contributed to the incidence of road traffic accident in Gamo Gofa Zone. Some of these include drivers’ mistakes resulted from behavioral problems, wrong crossing of the road by pedestrians and not giving priorities to vehicles and poor traffic regulation enforcement. Implementing different awareness raising mechanisms for the communities, capacity building and proper regulation enforcement mechanisms are suggested to decrease accidents in the zone.

Keywords: - Accident, Causes, Consequences, transport system, management

DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/11-28-03

Publication date:October 31^st 2019