SONA 2018: President Akufo-Addo bemoans heavy traffic congestion

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has bemoaned the persistent traffic jams in Accra, saying it is not only unproductive, but unhealthy and expensive.

Many Ghanaians living in Accra are often caught up in long vehicular traffic in the morning leading to the loss of productive working hours. The situation is the same during the post-work rush hour.

Nana Akufo-Addo believes the flooding of people from the rural areas to Accra is a contributing factor to overcrowding and the vehicular traffic in the capital.

Delivering his second State of the Nation Address in parliament on Thursday, 8 February 2018, he said: “Traffic jams and overcrowding are making our capital unattractive. There are certain inconveniences the people adjust to but traffic jams are not one of them. We are spending too much time stuck in traffic, it is unproductive, it is unhealthy and it’s expensive. I fear that one of these days one more car will join the madness on the roads in Accra and Our city will be in complete gridlock”.

To address the situation, he said his government will “improve upon the transportation system [across the country] so that no part of this country feels cut off, or can be deemed to be too far from the centre. That is one of the most effective ways to stop the unsustainable rush to Accra.”

The president added that: “We have to build the roads to open up and link up the various parts of the country. Journey times between parts of the country have to be reduced.”