The Minister for Transport, Joseph Bukari Nikpe, has given the strongest indication yet that government is working to rid the country’s roads of rickety vehicles.
Mr Nikpe said it had been observed that most of the vehicles were not road-worthy and contribute partly to the many road crashes the country records.
“Most of the vehicles on our roads themselves cause the accidents we experience on daily basis because of their state,” he noted.
Taking his turn at the Government Accountability Series at the Presidency in Accra yesterday, Mr Nikpe, MP, Saboba, said a proposed amendment to the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) Act had been approved by Cabinet and was set to be laid before Parliament for consideration.
“That amendment will give the NRSA the power to take off such rickety vehicles from our roads,” Mr Nikpe stated.
He explained that under the proposed law, the Authority would be given extra mandate to tow broken down vehicles off the streets to ensure sanity.
“If your vehicle breaks down within the township, within 30 minutes, it should be towed. But if you are unable to do so, the NRSA will, and surcharge you for the services,” he said.
He was optimistic the new law would go a long way to ensure safety on the roads, which have become death traps.
According to him, government was working assiduously to revamp the public transport sector by upping its investments in the space.
A fleet of buses, in that regard, he said, would be procured to augment that of the Metro Mass and State Transport Company to become a force to reckon with in the transport space.
Additionally, he said the remaining 90 of the 100 electric vehicle medium buses procured by the previous government would be pursued to enhance intracity movement of people.
The Ministry, Mr Nikpe said, was also collaborating with the Local Government Ministry to revive the Ayalolo transport system by bringing on stream their many buses that have been grounded over the years.
On water transport, he said both inland and coastal water transport systems were being pursued vigorously to take much of the traffic off the roads.
Work on portions of the western railway corridor, he said, had resumed after many months of inactivity following the inability of the previous government to honour its financial obligation to the contractors.
In the aviation sector, he said in as much as government was working towards the reestablishment of a national airline, work was also ongoing on the terminal two of the Kotoka International Airport to handle international flights as well as work on the runway of the Prempeh I International Airport, Kumasi, also nears completion
BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI
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