RISK FACTORS FOR ROAD TRAFFIC

Background: Currently Road Traffic Accidents (RTA) are ranked tenth among the leading causes of death and ninth among all leading causes of disability worldwide. There has been no published study on RTA in Gulu municipality. There is a high frequency of RTA in Gulu municipality with poor road design and inadequate knowledge on road safety precaution among road users. Objectives: To establish the causes of Road Traffic Accidents (RTA), establish the safety measures in place to protect road users to avoid RTA and establish people mostly involved and the mechanism of RTA. Design: A cross-sectional study Settings:Four divisions of Gulu Municipality; Layibi, Laroo, Pece and Bardege. Subjects: Two hundred and forty two participants including pedestrians, drivers of different categories of vehicles, motorcyclists and bicyclists locally known as boda-boda and the police were interviewed. Results: Most respondents reported RTA as a problem in Gulu municipality (96%)