Tollbooths to washrooms: it’s just a plan, says Roads Ministry

The Ministry of Roads and Highways has dismissed reports suggesting it has definite plans to convert tollbooths into lavatories.

The Roads and Highways Minister, Kwasi Amoako-Attah, is reported to have said that the government will convert the structures into public toilets following the lifting of toll payments in November last year.

Speaking to Asaase News, Nasir Ahmad Yartey, the head of public relations for the ministry, explained that the idea is still under consideration, alongside many other proposals.

“There are several proposals as to what becomes of the tollbooths. One of such proposals was to see whether [they] could be [converted], so it is not a categorical statement that [any tollbooth] will be turned into a urinal.

“And so, the minister was trying to say that there are several uses [to which] we can put these tollbooths … and so that was just one option on the table: it is not the final decision. And so it wasn’t a categorical statement,” Yartey said.

Bring back road tolls

Adu Owusu Sarkodie, a senior lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Ghana, wants the government to reintroduce the road toll system with immediate effect as part of measures to raise revenue.

Dr Sarkodie believes automating the collection of tolls and generally making it more efficient will help generate revenue that Ghana needs.

“Reverse the removal of road tolls. Get the road tolls back on the roads,” Dr Sarkodie said recently (17 January 2022), speaking on The Asaase Breakfast Show. “I agree to the removal of the road tolls in the state in which they were.

“I have never subscribed to the collection of coins on the roads. I have always proposed that we should mechanise, automate the road toll. The University of Ghana has given us a clear example of that. If it can be done at Legon, it can be done in every part of the country,” Sarkodie told the ABS host, Kwaku Nhyira-Addo.

He added: “Bring the road toll back in a more efficient way to raise the revenue. We cannot be driving free on the roads like that. It must be paid for. So get the road tolls back, mechanise and automate it, reduce the interpersonal collection of coins and all that, make people buy electronic cards, [and] the government has ready cash at the beginning of the year, and they can use it to construct the number of roads you want.”

Background

The government abolished all tolls on public roads and bridges in the 2022 Budget Statement.

Ken Ofori-Atta, the Minister for Finance, said the scrapping of road tolls should come as a relief for vehicle users, given the heavy traffic, lengthening of travel and ineffective revenue collection at toll points on our public roads.

Explaining the rationale behind the ending of the road tolls system, the minister said the revenue that accrues to the state to go towards construction and maintenance of roads is inadequate. Hence, the government has to look elsewhere to generate revenue equitably for the construction and maintenance of roads in Ghana.

“Over the years, the tolling points have led to heavy traffic on our roads and lengthened travel time from one place to another, impacting negatively on time and productivity. The congestion generated at the tolling points, besides creating these inconveniences, also leads to pollution in and around those vicinities,” Ofori-Atta said.

“To address these challenges, the government has abolished all tolls on public roads and bridges. This takes effect immediately the Budget is approved.

“The toll collection personnel will be reassigned. The expected impact on productivity and reduced environmental pollution will more than offset the revenue forgone by removing the tolls,” the Finance Minister announced.

Ofori-Atta said to compensate for the loss of road tolls, the government is looking to introduce innovative ways of raising revenue, such as the proposed 1.7% additional levy on phone transactions, payable by mobile money users on transactions above the value of a cumulative GHC100 daily. He said the E-Levy, as it is popularly known, will help the state shore up revenue inflows to fund road projects.

Fred Dzakpata

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