The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Smart systems, speed limits, and infrastructure design offer a blueprint for reversing Uganda’s alarming road toll.
NEWS ANALYSIS | THE INDEPENDENT | Helsinki, Finland, has set a global benchmark in road safety after completing an entire year without a single traffic-related death. The city’s achievement, which officials describe as the result of long-term planning and disciplined implementation, stands in sharp contrast to Uganda’s escalating road fatalities.
Uganda’s road crash figures remain among the highest in Africa. The Uganda Police Annual Crime Report 2024 recorded 25,107 crashes, a 6.4% increase from the previous year, with 4,434 fatalities and more than 25,800 people either killed or injured.
On average, 12 Ugandans die on the road every day.
In October alone, two major incidents underscored the crisis. Sixty-three people perished in a multi-vehicle collision on the Kampala–Gulu Highway, while another three, including two university students, died in a crash at Bweyogerere in Wakiso District. These tragedies highlight the urgent need for Uganda to overhaul its approach to road safety.
Helsinki’s experience shows that sustained investment in safer road design, speed management, and smart enforcement can save lives. In Helsinki, more than half of city streets now have speed limits of 30 km/h, compared to 50 km/h on most roads five decades ago.
The city has redesigned intersections, crossings, and pavements to priorities pedestrians and cyclists. Public transport systems have been expanded, reducing the number of private vehicles and lowering accident exposure.
Technology and enforcement have played a crucial role.
Automated cameras monitor speed compliance, while police use real-time data to identify dangerous driving patterns. Uganda’s ongoing rollout of the smart solutions mirrors this approach: preventing violations and issue digital penalties. However, full implementation and consistent enforcement are still lacking.
Helsinki’s success also reflects a culture of discipline. Motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians obey traffic laws, supported by sustained awareness campaigns and transparent penalties. Uganda continues to face challenges of corruption, inadequate driver training, and poor adherence to safety rules — factors that undermine even well-intentioned reforms.
The Ugandan government has introduced digital enforcement under the Electronic Penalty System (EPS), revised traffic laws, and begun integrating cameras on major highways. Just 5 days of the EPS running showed that drivers stopped speeding.
Yet the results remain modest due to limited coverage, very short active period, and a lack of coordination among agencies. To move towards Helsinki’s model, Uganda must enforce discipline, redesign roads to protect vulnerable users, expand public transport options, and strengthen data-driven planning. Above all, road safety should be treated not as an isolated traffic issue but as a national development priority.
Helsinki’s experience proves that zero road deaths is achievable — not through luck, but through deliberate choices. For Uganda, the path to safer roads lies in combining smart systems, strict laws, better infrastructure, and civic responsibility. Every life lost on the road is preventable, and every reform delayed prolongs a national tragedy.
