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Developing Sekondi-Takoradi roads : To meet vehicular and population  growth
West Tanokrom link during construction

Developing Sekondi-Takoradi roads : To meet vehicular and population growth

Currently, it takes only eight minutes for motorists to move from Nkroful Junction to Apremdo Junction. 

Hitherto, it took about 25 minutes, even with the partial completion of the Kansawurodo bypass dual carriageway in the heart of Sekondi-Takoradi, the capital of the Western Region.

The 8.5 km Kansawurodo bypass serves as a critical link to the Trans-Ecowas Highway, the National Road One (N1), traversing many towns and cities from the Greater Accra, Central, through the Western regions and leading to Ghana’s western-bordered neighbour, Cote d’Ivoire. 

Additionally, it serves densely populated communities such as Anaji, Asakae, Kansawurodo and Kwesimintsim.

Prior to the construction of this road, motorists, particularly those moving beyond Takoradi, were compelled to use the already congested Central Business District (CBD) road, spending hours in traffic during peak hours.

Currently, Justmoh, the local contractor working on the bypass, according to the Western Regional Director of the Department of Urban Roads, Mr Rosby Komme Mensah, has completed about 85 per cent of the works. The contractor is now sealing the road with an asphaltic overlay on sections where drainage and earth works have been completed. 

Road features

The 8.5km dual carriageway is designed with a median, walkways, streetlights, horticultural landscape, lay-bys, and cycle lanes. Provision has also been made for the development of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lanes.

There will also be two interchanges at Nkroful and Apremdo junctions which will be constructed under the final phase of the work while 12 existing junctions are being improved to enhance traffic management to and from communities connected to the Kansawurodo bypass.

Mr Mensah said the project was being carried out in four phases; and was currently on schedule to be completed in about three months.

Some motorists, including Mr Daniel Crenstil, expressed their appreciation to the government for the ongoing projects in the twin-city.

Mr Crenstil, however, appealed to the government to continue to roll out more of such projects and also put in place a strategy to maintain them.

“Very often, we only construct these roads and no maintenance works are carried out on them,”  he explained.

Road Condition Mix

Currently, Takoradi, as per the inventory and condition survey data made available by the regional office, has a total of 696 km of road of which 381 km is paved, with the remaining unpaved. 

Fijai-Ntankoful Road

The Fijai-Ntankoful road is currently being carried out as a variation of the Kansawurodo Highway. The Fijai-Ntankoful road is a 1.4km minor arterial that links the Kansawurodo bypass to the Sekondi and the Fijai bypasses.

The alignment comprising the Fijai bypass, through Ntankoful and Kansawurodo communities, has been planned for the development of a road that will convey traffic directly to the port, thereby minimising congestion and safeguarding road pavements in the urban transport network.

 In addition to serving commuters in the rapidly developing northern parts of the metropolis, Fijai-Ntankoful minimises travel time of carting agricultural produce from Mampong and Ahanta Abassa communities to the markets.

“Prior to the commencement of work, the road was characterised by unsafe vertical slopes with undersized drainage structures,” Mr Mensah stated.

Kokompe-Adakope Roads

Messrs Asabea Engineering Ltd has completed works on the three-km Kokompe-Adakope road. The road is useful to motorists moving in and out of the industrial enclave of the oil city.

According to Mr Mensah, the project area, however, presented peculiar challenges as an industrial enclave. Audit of the project has brought to the fore the need to put in place some critical interventions to ensure total value for money. 

‘‘The industrial nature presents a potential risk of fire outbreaks and other safety issues and, therefore, makes it essential for an auxiliary route to be constructed to facilitate probable evacuation in the event of danger,” he explained.

Fortunately, he said the department had identified the road space and had completed the design for its construction. 

Mr Mensah stated that the road had been recommended to be asphalted to enable it to withstand the pressure placed on it by heavy duty vehicles commuting the industrial enclave.

Cocoa Roads

The Wassa East District and Sefwi Wiawso Municipality are benefiting from the Cocoa Roads project. Contractors have been engaged to work on various sections.

The project aims at improving the road network in the two municipalities to minimise travel time of cocoa beans from farms to cocoa holding sheds.

“The selected roads consist entirely of gravel roads characterised by extensive potholes and gulleys,” Mr Mensah noted.

Messrs Midwest Ltd is constructing the Sefwi Town roads which involves seven gravel and earth roads.

He has executed about 83 per cent of the work and is optimistic that he will complete ahead of the June 3, 2016 deadline.

At Daboase, the capital of the Wassa East District, Messrs Justmoh is also constructing seven gravel and earth roads to bituminous surface on the Socfinaf and Nana Ntaa roads.

Work on the project is about 75 per cent complete and on schedule. 

Asphaltic overlay

“Over the last two-year period, 47 km of key arterials and collectors within the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis have been overlaid with asphaltic concrete wearing course to minimise the life cycle cost of the urban road network and initiate a facelift within the metropolis,” Mr Mensah stated.

He also hinted that the asphaltic overlay programme was being extended to cover arterials and sensitive collectors in Axim, Asankrangwa, Tarkwa, Bogoso, Prestea, Sefwi Wiawso, Sefwi Bekwai, Bibiani, Agona Nkwanta, Shama, Daboase, Half Assini, Elubo, Nkroful and Sekondi-Takoradi.

Twin-City

Originally covered by tropical forest with a rich coastline and marine environment, the Western Region has a population of about 2.5 million. 

The region is Ghana’s most well-endowed in terms of natural resources and climate and has attracted high levels of investment in industry, trade and commerce over the past centuries.

The recent oil and gas off-shore find and exploration have increased the demand for land, and raised the pressure on already overstretched infrastructure and have also led to increase in migration.

The resultant rapid urbanisation is creating densely populated peripheral zones and vehicular growth rate of more than four per cent per annum. 

This has put tremendous pressure on the transport infrastructure in cities such as Sekondi-Takoradi, Tarkwa and Axim. 

The situation poses major transportation challenges, especially in the Central Business District (CBD) of Sekondi-Takoradi and the port environs where the bulk of the increase occurs. 

Already, considerable time is spent commuting to and from work by the working population living at the periphery.

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