Drivers defiantly use Birim River bridge at Akim Oda
Some drivers have forcibly opened up the Birim River bridge at Akim Oda to vehicular traffic, exposing motorists and other users of the bridge to great danger.
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The drivers have removed the four concrete bulwarks used by the contractors to block access to the bridge and are plying the route with impunity.
Some bolts and knots under the bridge have been loosened and the slightest trigger could lead to its collapse, with serious repercussions.
Rehabilitation works
The bridge was closed for rehabilitation works six months ago but was abandoned by the engineers of the Road Maintenance Unit of the Ghana Highways Authority (GHA) due to lack of logistics.
The GHA and the Akim Oda Concerned Citizens Association have on a number of occasions warned drivers not to use the bridge as they would be putting the lives of their passengers in danger.
When this writer went to see the bridge yesterday, some commercial vehicles and truck drivers were driving across it.
The government awarded the project to the GHA for rehabilitation in January 2016 and was to be completed at the end of March 2016 but other works were added to the project, compelling the contractor to shift the completion period to the end of May 2016.
However, the GHA staff abandoned the project in early May 2016, due to the lack of logistics.
The situation is posing a serious challenge to people travelling from Oda to New Abirem, Nkawkaw, Kumasi and beyond, some of whom have to make a detour through Boadua and Kade before reaching their destinations.
Drivers’ reaction
When the Daily Graphic spoke to some of the commercial drivers, they said the closure of the bridge was making it difficult for them to make ends meet.
They said they would continue to use the bridge until the contractor returned to the site to complete the rehabilitation works.
