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Opinions of Tuesday, 11 October 2022

Columnist: Anthony Obeng Afrane

Transport in Ghana under Mahama

Former president, John Dramani Mahama Former president, John Dramani Mahama

Harry S. Truman said: "Men make history and not the other way round. In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better". To support accelerated mobility of Ghanaians as well as the timely movement of goods and services across the country, Mahama's Government prioritised investments in transportation through the provision of state-of-the-art buses for commuters, improvement in the aviation, rail, and maritime sub-sectors to reduce the amount of time spent in moving goods and services to enhance productivity and spur economic growth. To provide the public with greater options and flexibility in road transport, public transportation was improved through the acquisition of a total of 495 buses to strengthen the operations of two public transport companies, namely the Metro Mass Transit and the Intercity STC; and the implementation of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Project. Some of these buses were designed to allow for easy access by persons with disability. The first batch of 116 buses were deployed to provide intra-city transport services after the installation of electronic ticketing systems in the buses. Processes for the Bus Rapid Transit Project also took place. Ten of the buses for the BRT were delivered and used for the training of drivers as well as the scheduling of routes. The project was piloted between the route of Amasaman and the Central Business District of Accra.