Motorists using the N1–N4 corridor should expect longer travel times as expansion works on the Accra–Tema Motorway continue, the Minister for Roads and Highways, Kwame Governs Agbodza, has cautioned.
According to the minister, traffic disruptions along the busy highway are unavoidable as engineers undertake critical phases of the construction aimed at improving traffic flow between Accra and Tema.
His comments follow heavy congestion experienced on Monday after a temporary traffic management plan was introduced to facilitate ongoing works on the motorway expansion project.
Speaking during a visit by the Vice President, Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, to the Ministry of Roads and Highways, Mr Agbodza said the diversion plan initially announced has been temporarily halted for review after its first implementation caused significant delays for commuters.
He explained that while the diversion was intended to ensure safety during construction, abandoning it entirely could expose motorists to serious risks.
“We carry out that exercise, the first phase, without the diversion. It’s risky because we are launching beams that are very heavy and can actually crash into an articulated truck and kill people in it,” he said.
Mr Agbodza noted that the ministry attempted the diversion during the first night of the operation but quickly suspended it after observing the scale of the traffic impact.
“We quickly pulled back and now today or tomorrow we’ll have a review to see whatever strategy we will use. But whatever we do, it will still impede the flow of traffic,” he added.
The Accra–Tema Motorway expansion is one of the major infrastructure projects being undertaken to ease congestion on one of Ghana’s busiest transport corridors, which carries thousands of commuters and heavy-duty vehicles daily between the capital and the Tema industrial enclave.
Meanwhile, Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang has urged officials at the ministry to ensure the project is completed without unnecessary delays.
She acknowledged the pressure from the public for quicker results but emphasised the need for efficiency in executing infrastructure projects.
“The president himself has explained that the entire country is like a construction site… But that is also asking for our patience at another level in our levels of tolerance,” she said.
The Vice President further encouraged officials to act swiftly on administrative processes to avoid unnecessary delays that could slow down the completion of the works.
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Source: www.myjoyonline.com