The Effia-Kwesimintim Municipal Assembly through a consultative meeting with the members of the District Security Council (DEGSEC) has banned the use of smaller tricycles, popularly known as "Pragya" in the Municipality for commercial use.

Currently, Pragya is being used for passenger services predominantly in remote areas and now creeping in the urban centers of the Region for the same service without proper road-traffic regulations.

Alhaji Abubakari Issah, Municipal Public Relations Officer (PRO) for the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Assembly (EKMA) who disclosed this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency said the decision formed part of efforts at ensuring the safety of residents in the Region.

He explained that during a recent meeting by the members of REGSEC where the decision was taken, it revealed that many of the Pragya riders were below 18 years and did not qualify to own a license per the laws of the country that regulated motor transport.

He said many of the tricycles did not have the necessary insurance cover and were also not conversant with road-traffic regulations, hence flouting them without recourse to their safety coupled with several complaints coming from the citizens and drivers about their indiscipline on the roads.

He said the ban of Pragya for commercial purposes in the Municipality was to reduce the rate of accidents on the roads, while ensuring the safety of residents, but not to keep them out of business and emphasized that the Assembly would confiscate any Pragya that would be seen operating in the Municipality.

According to the PRO, it was difficult for the Assembly to track the activities of the riders as many of them did not belong to any transport union and cautioned the riders and owners to comply or face the consequences, adding that no one would be spared when caught.

Alhaji Issah said the other type of tricycles known as "Aboboyaa" was however exempted from the ban because it was helping to transport goods though some were being used to carry passengers contrary to the regulations, but would later be regulated.

He said the Assembly in collaborations with the Motor Transport and Traffic Division (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service, Division of Vehicle and Licensing Authority (DVLA) and the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) would put together a policy framework that would regulate the activities of the Pragya riders for public safety.

It would be recalled that as part of efforts to clamp down on the use of motorbikes for criminal activities within the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis and to provide optimum security to ensure public safety in the Region, the Regional MTTD of the Ghana Police Service embarked on night operations to bring perpetrators to book.

The operation, was also aimed at arresting riders who violated the Road Traffic Regulations such as unregistered motorcycles and tricycles, riding without Rider's License or Insurance, use of motorcycles without the documents and any violation of the Road Traffic Regulations.

In April this year, the RMTTD embarked on a similar exercise and arrested and impounded 138 motorbikes and 15 tricycles in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis for various motor offences.

Eighteen persons were released after they were found to be innocent, while 49 were processed for court with 32 out of the 59 convicted to a total fine of GHS 5,280.