Vice President, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang has said government is not turning a deaf ear to the current public transport crisis in the country.
At a meeting with the Transport Ministry, Local Government Ministry and stakeholders in the transport sector on Friday, January 16, she assured of government’s commitment to provide the necessary support to improve commuter experience, reducing congestion, and ensuring affordable and reliable public transport services across the country.
Her comments come at a time when many commuters are facing difficulties accessing commercial transport, a situation that has led to overcrowding, long waiting times and, in some cases, exploitation through fare hikes.
“Sometimes, the problem is caused by all kinds of situations including even exploitation by some of our own drivers, some long queues at bus stops and terminals, congestions and all kinds of stresses that comes with the situation.
“And we are informed that our fellow country men and women, we want them to be aware that government is not blind to the situation that we have not seen and we don’t care, we think it is somebody’s problem, it is everybody’s problem. That is why I started by saying that we need to team up to find the solutions,” she stated.
The Vice President further announced that government will provide strong support to both public and private transport operators through the supply of new high-occupancy buses as part of efforts to address Ghana’s worsening transport challenges.
Delivering government’s message, the Vice President said President John Dramani Mahama had specifically instructed that immediate steps be taken to strengthen existing transport systems.
“His Excellency has asked me to assure all of you that he will give support to Metro Mass, Aayalolo and the private sector with new high-occupancy buses in order to augment the services in the medium term,” she stated.
Prof. Opoku-Agyemang further revealed that government would also focus on rehabilitating broken-down buses currently grounded due to mechanical faults.
“We also have plans to ensure that those that need to be repaired, the processes will be expedited to ensure they can put more buses on the road as soon as possible,” she added.
The Vice President explained that the intervention forms part of broader measures to create an efficient and sustainable transport system capable of meeting the needs of a growing urban population.
