Construction works on the Giffard Road in the military enclave of the Air Force Base and Burma Camp are expected to be completed in six months.
New connections to the traffic-prone Spintex Road and Teshie through the shrubs of the country's military zone of the Air Force Base and Burma Camp are to be provided.
Three contractors have been engaged to simultaneously construct and reconstruct the roads, which are expected to improve access to and from the eastern suburbs to the capital.
Status
Currently, work on all three phases of the World Bank and the Government of Ghana-funded project is progressing according to schedule and the Director of Urban Roads, Mr Abass Awolu, is optimistic about its timely completion.
After the completion of the project, estimated at GH¢33.6 million and $23.4 million, motorists moving on the Giffard Road to Spintex Road or Teshie will no longer need to go through Tetteh-Quarshie Interchange.
They will instead turn around the former Home Touch restaurant on the Giffard Road, where an interchange is being constructed, and use an underpass located in-between the Air Force Base and Burma Camp to access the connections in two links.
First phase
Extensive work has been carried out on the reconstruction of the 5.7km Giffard Road spanning the La T-Junction and Flower Pot on the Spintex Road. The Chinese construction firm, Gansu International, has, according to Mr Awolu, been able to complete about 80 per cent of the works.
The road has now been widened from a previous one lane to two lanes on the right and three lanes on the left if one approaches from the La T-Junction.
Mr Awolu explained that an additional lane was provided on the left side of the road in the design for parking.
"We realised that a number of motorists parked their vehicles along that stretch to access shops or homes," he stated.
Gansu International has so far completed earth works, drainage and kerbs. The company has also laid over three kilometre of asphaltic concrete binder course.
Phase Two
China Railway (Wuju) Group is undertaking the second phase of the project, which is the Burma Camp Road One. Under this project, an underpass is being constructed in-between the Air Force Base and Burma Camp to suppress the road since the area is a military zone.
An interchange, which will connect the Burma Camp Road One around the Airport Hills across the railway line to link the Spintex Road around the Flower Pot is also part of this project.
The Burma Camp Roads One and Two link the Giffard Road to Spintex and Teshie. Work on these roads was also ongoing at the time of the visit.
Third phase
This phase involves the construction of a 3.6km road to link the Giffard Road to Teshie. China Jianxi, the contractor on the project, is also building a 40-metre span bridge over the Kordjor stream at La to replace the existing one.
Challenges
A large tract of the land was virgin prior to the commencement of the project but that has significantly changed. Developers are already encroaching on the road reservation which, according to Mr Awolu, was of a major concern to the department.
He said the DUR was, however, in discussions with relevant authorities, including the La Dadekotopon Municipal Assembly, to remove the illegal structures since there had been a compulsory acquisition of the Right of Way on the entire project.
