Fix roads before re-introducing tolls - Government urged

Deputy Ranking Member on the Roads and Transport Committee of Parliament, Isaac Adjei Mensah, has urged government to fix deplorable roads before it re-introduces toll collection.

This follows government’s decision to re-introduce the collection of road tolls after abolishing it in the 2022 budget.

The collection of road tolls was abolished in November 2021 after it was announced by the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta while Presenting the 2022 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the government on the floor of Parliament.

The Finance Minister noted that over the years, the tolling points had become unhealthy market centres, leading to heavy traffic on our roads.

He added that the toll booths had also lengthened travel time from one place to another, and impacted negatively on productivity.

In replacement, the Government introduced the E-Levy in order to make the tolling universal.

This did not sound well with the opposition and they always advised that the collection of tolls is continued.

After citing revenue shortfalls from the e-Levy, the Finance Minister reading the 2023 budget mentioned the re-introduction of the road tolls.

Speaking on Atinka TV’s morning show, Ghana Nie with Ama Gyenfa Ofosu Darkwa, Mr Isaac Adjei noted that most of the roads are in bad state now and so they need to be fixed before the collection of tolls start.

He also observed that most of the tollbooths were destroyed when the collection of tolls halted and also urged the government to fix them.

Mr. Isaac Adjei also stated that the government should bring the reintroduction of tolls to parliament in order to explain to the public how much it will cost, where the tolls will be collected, and what the funds will be used for.

Mr Isaac Adjei was of the belief that Ghanaians deserve some transparency hence the need for government to also assure the people that the monies would be used to fix the roads before collection starts.