Accra: Residents, students and business owners within the Ho Technical University (HTU) community are increasingly getting frustrated over the slow pace of rehabilitation works on the University's collapsed road bridge. The bridge, a vital transport link in the municipality, caved in several months ago.
According to Ghana News Agency, while reconstruction work has commenced, residents and students say the slow progress is paralysing daily life and crippling businesses. The students who spoke with the agency noted that the broken bridge had turned their daily commuting into an obstacle course. Some said the situation had compelled many of them to take lengthy alternative routes to attend lectures, while others admitted to cutting through private properties.
'The situation is completely unacceptable,' Freeman, one of the students lamented. 'We are forced to walk through people's private homes and compounds just to get to campus on time,' he added. Joshua Ayayi, a resident and regular user of the road, described the situation as uncomfortable, and highly inconvenient.
The transport sector has also not been spared. Tricycle operators, who serve as the primary mode of transit for students, complained that their profit margins were being wiped out. Calvin, a tricycle operator, said they were forced to navigate much longer, winding detour routes to take students to campus for lectures. However, he said they were unable to increase fares, leading to heavy losses in fuel and time.
An economic crisis is also brewing for traders situated along the affected stretch. With foot traffic completely diverted, businesses have experienced a drastic drop in sales. Dzigbordi, a trader, said the students were their primary customers, and now that the road was blocked 'no passes here anymore.' She said their sales had plummeted, and they were struggling to survive.
Left with dwindling options and rising costs, the community is collectively calling on the Municipal assembly and the relevant road authorities to intervene immediately. They are demanding that the contractor expedite the rehabilitation works to restore normal traffic flow and bring economic relief back to the university enclave.