Rail transport development; let’s keep up the tempo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s recent three-day tour of the Greater Accra Region saw him inspect progress of work on the Afienya-Ashaiman rail line which is intended to improve transportation between the two sprawling areas of Tema and Ashaiman.

After that, the President also unveiled a plaque for the start of work on the Volta Rail Bridge (which is part of the Tema–Mpakadan railway under the Ghana-Burkina interconnectivity railway project expected to be completed in 2022) at Ogoli, near Juapong in the North Tongu District in the Volta Region.

These projects are coming on the heels of the steady improvement in the country’s rail transport, such as the reopening of the Accra-Tema rail line, the successful test run of the locomotive from Accra to Nsawam and the opening of the Sekondi to the Takoradi Port line, just to mention a few, and the Daily Graphic is in no doubt that these laudable achievements signify the return of the country’s rail romance.

It is our trust that the government will continue to keep faith with the people by working around the clock to ensure that rail transport competes favourably with other forms of transportation in the country.

As seen in the major economies of the world, rail transport is the catalyst for accelerated development. The citizenry heavily depends on it for passenger transport and freight.

Indeed, the successes chalked up by Ghana as a fledgling country in the 1960s were largely due to its buoyant rail network then.

Ghana's railway network dates back to 1898 when it was the main means of haulage for minerals, foodstuffs and raw materials from the mines and the hinterlands to the ports and city centres, as well as the means of transport to parts of the country.

Without an effective rail transport then, minerals such as manganese and bauxite, as well as cocoa and other cash crops and foodstuffs, could not have been transported easily from the hinterlands to the two main ports of Takoradi and Tema.

While the Daily Graphic wonders why we looked on helplessly as a country for such an important sector to totally collapse, we are very optimistic that rail transport will bounce back once again with the attention and investments it has been receiving lately.

We find it heartwarming that two different governments have stayed the course in revamping the country’s railway sector, with the current one creating a separate ministry to fast-track the development of the sector.

We are of the view that the railway sector has the capacity to transform Ghana's economy from a middle-income to a first-world status, but that will only happen if we keep the pace, remain focused and committed and cooperate with the government as it fully revamps the rail sector.

Already, the Ghana Railway Company Limited is experiencing hiccups as a result of the heavy encroachment along some lines which must be dealt with expeditiously.

We are in no doubt that if the country improves on its current railway network and extends it to all regions, according to the master plan, the Ghanaian economy will certainly be boosted.

That is the reason we ask all encroachers to readily give way for broken-down lines to be fixed, while those living along the lines must do well to patronise train services to make them viable and sustainable as well.

We also urge the government to work on lines close to human settlements, so that people will not have the excuse not to patronise train services.

Elsewhere in the world, the main mode of public transport for all classes of society is rail and we can only pray that we also get there soon to free the roads and enhance economic development.

Further, premium must be placed on rail lines connecting cities across the regions, so that commuters will have the option of using rail transport when travelling across the country. ­