Contruction work on Accra-Kasoa highway causes gridlock for several hours

Motorists who used the Kasoa Tollbooth stretch on Sunday, January 16, 2022, spent several hours in traffic due to construction works on a portion of the road.

The Ghana Highway Authority undertook the construction work close to the Tuba bus stop which was believed to be hampering vehicular traffic on the stretch.

The construction works affected many road users who used the Kasoa-Cape Coast stretch, spending hours in traffic on a Sunday afternoon.

According to some road users, they spent close to five hours on the stretch.

Some passengers on board some commercial buses were also spotted alighting.

Many motorists Citi News spoke to expressed disappointment in the timing of the project, suggesting that it could have been done at dawn instead of the day when the road was busy.

“I’ve been in traffic for about two hours now and I am shocked that we would have a traffic situation of this magnitude on a Sunday. I thought today being a Sunday there will be less traffic, but the situation is terrible. I’m very tired, but I have to go back to work on Monday. I only hope that the construction work will improve the situation because previously we all thought the problem was the toll booth but after the toll collection was stopped, we still experience terrible traffic,” a motorist said.

Jeffery Kofi Blagogee, another commuter, said, “I left Achimota at 2.30 pm and it is now 5.47pm, and that is over 3 hours. Ordinarily, within an hour I should have been home, but for more than 3 hours now I’m still in traffic. They should have announced it and made us aware of the construction.”

The Tuba bus stop section of the highway had some speed ramps that slowed the movement of vehicles.

Officials of the Ghana Highway Authority who declined speaking to Citi News on record say the sectional repair works is part of an exercise to fix portions of the 15.9 kilometre Mallam Junction to Kasoa stretch.

The contract, being sponsored by the government of Ghana will last 24 months.