KNUST Vice Chancellor doubts success of BRT

Under the new system, commercial buses will be licensed to ply specific routs The Vice Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology has cast doubts on the effectiveness of a proposed urban transport project to be rolled out in Ghana next week. The new system, which is intended to address perennial traffic congestion in urban areas, will involve the creation of special lanes for commercial vehicles. Professor Kwesi Kwafo Adarkwa is an expert in urban and regional planning and argues that widening roads and allocating special lanes will not provide a solution to traffic management. According to Professor Adarkwa, provisions in the proposal for rolling out the plan do not take into consideration the country’s vehicle growth rate of 10 percent per annum and the growing congestion of central business districts. He believes decongesting the central business districts of the cities and the creation of satellite markets in smaller towns and communities is the best way to address the country’s traffic crisis. The professor added that whilst the proposed system may work well during rush hours, it may not work best at other times. “…in our society, we need to police this carefully, otherwise, it works in theory but it may not work for us,” he told Luv FM’s Elton John Brobbey. Under the new system, commercial drivers will be required to apply for route operating licenses that will be made annually renewable by metropolitan assemblies. The permits will limit vehicles to specific routes with drivers who ply outside their approved routes being sanctioned. The Transport Ministry and other stakeholders studied how the proposed system works in other countries to ensure smooth commencement in Ghana. Source: Myjoyonline.com/Ghana