Temporary movement of trucks after 6.00 pm agreed

Accra, Feb. 3, GNA - The Ghana Road Operators announced on Thursday that it has agreed with the police for a temporary hold on the implementation of the law that bans a certain category of vehicles from plying the roads between 6.00 pm and 6.00 am.

It said in a statement signed by Mr Matthew Hayford and Mr Bashir Mouaus that the agreement was reached in a meeting between the Inspector General of Police, Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, and the Police Administration and the leadership of the Road Transport Operators on the ban of night movement of heavy trucks.

"As a result, the enforcement of the law on the night movement of he= avy trucks carrying goods has been temporarily been put on hold," the stateme= nt said. The IGP had imposed the ban in compliance with a 1994 law that prohibits any truck which weighs more than three tons from plying the roads between 6.00 pm and 6.00 am. The law, however, exempts a certain category o= f trucks for which permits are issued.

The statement said: 93The temporary hold in the implementation of the said law is to give time for public education and sensitization of the travelling public. It will also enable road transporters to adjust to the provision of the law. Finally, it will allow the Ministry of the Interior t= o put in place arrangements for the issuance of permits to those who would be exempted." Cocoa haulage truck drivers in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis at the Cocoa Village at Beahu on Wednesday demonstrated against the ban. The truck drivers, numbering over 100, burnt tyres at the entrance of the Cocoa Village and prevented other trucks loaded with cocoa from enterin= g the yard.

The drivers accused the police of taking advantage of the ban to extor= t money from them. Mohammed Issaka, a truck driver, said the ban would create inconvenienc= e for them since most trucks preferred moving at night when the traffic congestion reduced considerably. He added that the ban would force truck drivers to speed to get to their destinations to avoid being arrested and that could lead to more road crashes.