‘Indiscipline by traders, drivers in Sekondi-Takoradi worrying’

The Chief Executive of the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA), Mr Anthony K. K. Sam, has expressed worry at the increased level of indiscipline displayed by traders and commercial vehicle drivers in the metropolis.

He observed that the traders were undertaking their activities indiscriminately, saying pedestrian walkways had been turned into stalls and lorry stations, a situation which did not befit the city.

He said there was space, but it was just the indiscipline on the part of the people that was creating the congestion in the twin-city.

Mr Sam again expressed worry that recalcitrant commercial drivers had created unauthorised terminals at almost all road intersections or junctions within the city.

Addressing the Second Ordinary Meeting of the Third Session of the Seventh STMA, the chief executive said the situation had created unwarranted and avoidable congestion and must be halted.

As managers of the city, he warned that the assembly would not countenance such high level of indiscipline, which was embarrassing, creating a mess and exposing pedestrians and schoolchildren to danger as they were compelled to walk almost on the streets instead of on the walkways.

He noted that the situation was also creating health hazards.

The worrying development, which is also caused by the increase in population, also poses a threat to some sensitive national installations through the blocking of access to water hydrants and high-tension electricity pylons, with managers of state lands, owners of lands, building inspectors of the assembly and some assembly members said to be part of the problem.

The chief executive expressed regret that the indiscriminate siting of kiosks was a serious problem, and said the worrying issue was that the people thought that they could use every empty space in the city for kiosks or to erect containers for their trading activities.

Mr Sam said the assembly was in the process of putting up well-designed stores and planting trees along the streets of reserved places to replace the unsightly containers that were spreading all over the city.

BRT

As part of the government’s effort to improve urban mobility in the cities, Mr Sam said the Ministry of Transport had started the implementation of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) System in the cities in Ghana to address the situation.

After Accra, he said the next city selected by the sector ministry for the implementation of the BRT system was Sekondi-Takoradi, which would cover Shama, Effia-Kwesintsim and Ahanta West municipalities with 20 buses.

Aside from the containers and unapproved bus terminals, he said the rich landscape had also been degraded.