Road accidents have killed 351 people in the Ashanti region since the beginning of the year. The figure is 61 percent higher than the 218 deaths recorded at the end of September 2010. Figures released for the third quarter of 2011 indicate the region recorded 117 deaths and 728 injuries from 518 reported accident cases. Over 300 pedestrian knock-downs were also recorded within the past nine months. Road safety campaigners have described the figures as alarming, considering fatalities involving long-distance buses. The Regional Coordinating Council recently constituted a taskforce, made up of the Police Motor Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU), the Driver and Vehicular Licensing Authority (DVLA) and the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) to help curb the menace of road fatalities. Regional Manager of the NRSC, Kwaku Oware-Boateng, told Luv Fm the taskforce is not relenting in the drive to instill discipline on the roads to reduce the carnage. He identified human error, resulting from excessive speeding, as a major cause of accidents on the roads. He has charged passengers to be vigilant in controlling the excesses of drivers, emphasizing that in matters of road safety it behooves on everybody to be part of the crusade to protect lives.