Government will expand roads everywhere – Mahama

President John Dramani Mahama on Monday announced that government would carry out major intervention in the road transport sector over the next four years to absorb the ever-growing volume of traffic across the country.

He noted that roads had become an issue of social tension in the country and there was therefore the need for an intervention in that sector to facilitate the movement of people, goods and services.

President Mahama announced this when he inspected the Awoshie-Pokuase and the Anyaa-Pokuase roads projects respectively, in the Ga West Municipality of the Greater Accra Region.

The 15-kilometre (Km) Awoshie-Pokuase road and the 14-km Anyaa-Pokuase roads come with community infrastructure works, including a hospital for Ofankor, 14 schools to end the shift system in communities along the road project areas, accident centre at Amasaman, boreholes, new market and a lorry park for Anyaa.

The project on the Awoshie-Pokuase stretch of the road began in January last year and is being jointly funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Agence Francaisse Development (AFD).

With a contract sum of GH¢30.36 million, it is being constructed by the China Jiangxi Corporation and it would be completed in December this year.

The Anyaa-Pokuase dual carriageway started in November 2011 with a contract sum of GH¢77.03 million and is being built by China Railway Wuju. Completion date is December 2014.

“It would include foot bridges, traffic light signals and street lighting systems,” President Mahama stated, adding that “life is not going to be the same for these communities,” because of the education, health and potable water supply components of the project.

As part of the project, the President indicated that an interchange would be constructed at the intersection of the Awoshie-Pokuase road and the Nsawam road to improve safety at the intersection.

President Mahama also directed the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to pay compensation to land owners, who were yet to receive compensation, to enable the smooth execution of the projects.

President Mahama expressed government’s appreciation to the AfDB and the AFD for the project, which he described as a development corridor.

Alhaji Amidu Amin Sulemana, Minister of Roads and Highways told the President that the projects were on course and that the issue of compensation would be addressed in due course.

He said the French and the AfDB had agreed to support the construction of the inter-change project.

The Acting Director of Urban Roads, Alhaji Ahunu Abbass, who conducted the President round the project sites, stated that the community infrastructure works, such as the new market, water supply schemes, hospital and clinic would be completed by December next year.

In addition to the main road projects, he said, the AfDB was funding the construction of secondary roads and water distribution lines along the corridor.

“To improve safety along the road, provision has been made for eight footbridges at critical intersections along the road,” he added.

Source: GNA