The Dying Metro Mass Buses System

Follow-ups by the Network Herald’s on the performance of the Metro Mass Transport System after it broke the news that about 50 of the buses have broken down seem to suggest that nothing has changed. The issues of lack of routine maintenance as a result of the non-availability of mechanics who understand the workings of the buses and spare parts, has resulted in 30 more buses being grounded in Accra, Tamale, Kumasi and Sekondi-Takoradi and about 300 drivers and conductors abandoning their post due to poor conditions of service.

The rest of the workers at the GTTC who seem to have accepted their fate were busily engrossed in arguments ranging from football to lotto or playing cards or draft in an uncompleted building.

Starring at them some 5 meters from the building were close to 20 of the “beleaguered” yellow colored buses waiting patiently for final decisions.The State Transport Company, Kingdom Transport Service and Afrikiko Transport Company have apparently signed on these drivers who were taken through special training.

The system is under the Ministry of Roads and Transport.Headquarters officials at the Government Technical Training Center (GTTC) at Keneshie, explained the exodus of the workers primarily to pathetic conditions of service and the age of the buses that were freely donated to the government of Ghana by its Italian counterparts barely one year ago. The drivers and conductors receive between ?340,000 and ?450,000 without tax and medical facilities.

The Network Herald reported early this month that barely a year after the introduction of the Metro Mass Transport System to ease the plight of commuters in the country, some 50 of those buses have broken down and left in the garage of the operators for lack of general maintenance. This we reported was as a result of non-existent spare parts and qualified mechanics to work on the old automatic buses.

Following this report, the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Roads and Transport issued a counter reports that, some mechanics and officials of the MMTS has been sent to Italy to understudy the manufacturers while they await the clearance of a container load of spare parts at the Tema Harbour. Investigations however suggested that the ministry had neither sent mechanics to Italy to understudy the manufacturers of the Fiat Italian buses, nor received any container load of Spare parts that was awaiting clearance at the Tema Harbor.

What were rather awaiting clearance were another 30 of the same Fiat buses. It also came out that the suggestion that the country abounds in spares for the buses was far from the true facts on the ground. The paper is informed that the Fiat Company in Italy has grounded all the buses, as a result of the country’s membership of the European Union, which requires that vehicles of member countries conform to standards.