Many vehicles have been trapped in heavy vehicular traffic in parts of Accra as commuters undertake last-minute shopping for Christmas.
Citi News observed that areas close to the Central Business District were the worse affected.
The long chain of vehicles heading to and from Accra Central barely moved for several minutes.
Along the Graphic Road – Obetsebi Lamptey Circle road towards the Central Business District where Citi News’ Kojo Agyeman reported from, the situation was terrible as there seemed to be gridlock, with no vehicle moving.
Some passengers who could not bear the frustration alighted from their buses and continued their journey on foot.
Others also resorted to hiring motorbikes to help them meander through the thick traffic. Even with that, many motorbikes had challenges riding smoothly in between the commercial vehicles that were in bumper to bumper situation.
Citi News’ Kojo Agyeman reported that although there was a police officer on site to direct traffic, vehicles could barely move beyond a meter before they had to stop.
He said the cars from the “Graphic Road and the Obetsebi Laptey Circle are finding it difficult to move to the Central Busines district.”
A driver who spoke to Citi News said he set off from Amasaman over three hours earlier, but has spent almost two hours moving from the Kwame Nkrumah Circle area towards Accra Central.
“The traffic situation here is quite bad. I’ve been in traffic for about two hours and the car is barely moving,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service says it has deployed more than 400 personnel to manage Accra’s traffic congestion during the Christmas season.
Although heavy vehicular traffic is regular during the yuletide, many motorists and commuters believe this year’s has been the worst in recent times.
But the MTTD has said it is determined to ensure the free flow of traffic during the period to avert congestion and help reduce travelling time for commuters.
The Accra Central MTTD Commander, ACP Fosu Ackaah, in an interview on Eyewitness News said the traffic is mainly due to the increased vehicular and pedestrian movement within the metropolis.
“The intensity of the traffic has come as a result of today being the last day before Christmas. Because of the Christmas a lot of people came to the Central business district and exiting is causing some traffic congestion… The number of vehicles and pedestrians have increased, and that is causing the problem,” he said.
Listing areas that were prone to heavy vehicular traffic, he mentioned the Graphic Road, Kaneshie, Odorkor, Sakaman route and the 37-Airport-Tetteh Quarshie interchange route.
The other areas are the Spintex Road, Pokuase to Amasaman and Circle to Tesano route.
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By: Jonas Nyabor | citinewsroom.com | Ghana