The revival of rail transport - a timely intervention for Ghana’s industrial growth
Road transport is the most dominant form of transportation for both freight and passengers in Ghana due to a nascent domestic air transport industry and a railway industry virtually defunct. The concentration on road transport has not been devoid of problems.
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Motorists who travel between the major cities of Ghana - Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi - are bedevilled with constraints (stretches of bad roads, heavy traffic congestion, risk of night travel etc.).
Travel times for these journeys are, therefore, significantly increased due to the aforementioned factors, which are further complicated with the rising prices of fuel. Again, within these cities, large numbers of low-capacity vehicles equally create congestion, coupled with unruly behaviour of motorists. Exhaust emissions from these cars, mostly second-hand, that use less-efficient burning technologies, have harmful effects on the environment.
The attempt to remedy the situation with the expansion of the road networks in these cities has rarely been effective in reducing traffic congestion. More traffic accompanies road construction and expansion.
This raises concern about why rail transport has not seen substantial improvement for such a long time. It is true that rail transport requires a large investment of capital. However, considering the fact that the Takoradi-Kumasi railway was completed in 1903 and the Accra-Kumasi railway in 1923, an expansion of the rail network would have been the natural expectation.
By 1961, there were daily passenger train services on the triangular Accra-Kumasi-Takoradi line and a night sleeper service between Takoradi and Kumasi.
A return to an active rail sector is desperately needed and the establishment of the Ministry of Railway Development has come at an opportune time. The rail sector will take the burden off the road network in Ghana and ensure longer lifespans of newly constructed roads.
Benefits of rail transport
Rail transport will offer a unique approach to stimulating economic growth in communities in deprived regions of the country. There will be huge employment opportunities for both skilled and unskilled workers in rail construction and its related services. Embarking on an extensive rail development project is a prerequisite for the industrial overhaul that the Government of Ghana seeks to achieve. The Ghana Railways Master Plan outlines the phases of expansion of new rail lines.
This should serve as a guide in locating the factories in the “One District One Factory” Programme. Bringing in raw materials and transporting finished products from these factories to different parts of Ghana and beyond will require an efficient rail system since it is a more economical option for freight transport.
Towns such as Yendi in Yendi District, Buipe in Central Gonja District, Jirapa in Jirapa District, Yapei in Central Gonja District and Nkwanta in Nkwanta South District will all be traversed by the proposed railway lines. The presence of iron ore deposits, high cassava yield and cotton production at Yendi makes it an ideal location for textile, ironmongery and cassava processing factories. Buipe has limestone deposits, an important raw material for a ceramic and earthenware industry.
Kenaf fibre, an important raw material for the textile industry, is cultivated at Yapei. Jirapa is also noted for livestock and cotton, which makes setting up a textile, a leather or a food processing factory ideal. The tourism industry will also be improved with the rail development. Tourist sites in remote locations will become accessible with the development of the rail lines.
Measures to ensure the success of the rail industry
As a result of the new towns most likely to spring up along the proposed railways and the towns that will be at the centre of rail activity, it is important for detailed planning schemes to be developed to ensure optimal use of the rail lines. Having master plans for these towns will ensure orderly growth and improve the economic profile of these towns to attract further infrastructure development.
To improve the viability of passenger rail transport, new towns will have to be designed and developed to be less reliant on automobile for movement of inhabitants within the town and neighbouring towns. Congregating housing, offices, commercial facilities and other activities around railway stations will improve patronage.
This will require deliberation with local government, residents of the community and other key stakeholders to ensure that there is land available for infrastructure projects. Land use regulations in the form of zoning, urban design and land banking measures would have to be completed as soon as possible.
The acquisition by the Government of Ghana of land and property in close proximity to the rail lines is a good land management technique. Public ownership means that these lands will be taken off the development market, preventing haphazard development by private developers. The success of the railway transport will, therefore, require active participation of community groups, civic organisations, local government officials, property owners, bankers and all professionals involved in infrastructure development.
The writer is an urban designer at Habitance Hub, an urban planning and design studio in Accra, Ghana. [email protected]