One of the observations Joe Gidisu, Minister for Roads and Highways, made after what most people described as his �baptism of fire� ride in a trotro (commercial) vehicle to mark this year�s World Transportation Day, was the incessant traffic congestion on most of the country�s roads.
Mr. Gidisu, who admitted he was getting back on the �trotro� for the first time in 15 years after leaving the classroom, was emphatic the country�s transportation network ought to be improved, in order to ease the burden pedestrians go through in their attempt to get the their destinations. �It has exposed me to a whole lot of things. For example we started off looking for bus to Tema Station in Accra, we couldn�t get one so we had to transit on a Circle-bound vehicle to 37 and another one to the Ministry area, he told journalists.
He said a pilot project will be mapped out by his ministry to ensure the creation of special bus lanes for vehicles with enough sitting capacity to covey pedestrians so the number of cars on the country�s roads will be reduced in order to ease congestion.
Mr. Gidisu mentioned both the Kasoa through Mallam roads, known for their featured congestion, as roads mapped out for that exercise. The buses, he admitted, �will be decent enough for those using the private cars to rather decide to go on them. Some would be express and would not be stopping to pick passengers.�
His admission that a day�s ride on a �trotro� bus was not enough to give him an insight into the daily struggles of most Ghanaians means his ministry ought to be up and doing if the transportation network will get any better, some have said.
The transportation system in Ghana, to say the least, is not in a good shape and despite the many drafted policies from successive governments, the situation remains the same. The daily carnage on the country�s roads is ample evidence to this effect. At the beginning of this year for example, several roads accidents were recorded with huge casualties.
Last month for example, Mr. Gidisu intimated the situation will soon be addressed. Speaking to journalists at the �meet the press series,� he mentioned the World Bank as having made available an amount of $225 million to his ministry for expansion works to be carried out on various road networks in the country.
Among the beneficiaries include cocoa growing areas where most of the roads are in bad shape, making it difficult for cocoa to be transported from the hinterlands into the cities. Broken down traffic lights, vehicular congestion and poor construction of most of the roads are common features in the transportation sector and despite the many promises of getting them fixed, the situation remains the same.
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