Ghana not ready for underground railway

  By Bernice Bessey The Minister-designate for Railways Development, Joe Ghartey, says Ghana is not ready to build an underground railway system as part of the locomotive evolution the country is about to embark upon. According to the Minister-designate, the estimated cost of the construction of one kilometre of underground railway network is US$40 million, […]

The post Ghana not ready for underground railway appeared first on The Chronicle - Ghana News.

 

By Bernice Bessey

The Minister-designate for Railways Development, Joe Ghartey, says Ghana is not ready to build an underground railway system as part of the locomotive evolution the country is about to embark upon.

According to the Minister-designate, the estimated cost of the construction of one kilometre of underground railway network is US$40 million, while that of an above ground r

ailway system is estimated at the cost of US$3 million.

Comparatively, the Minister-designate considers the above ground railway system more ideal for Ghana, and a better way to improve train transportation to various parts of the country, saying “for the meantime, Ghana will consider above ground railway system, and perhaps think of underground in the next 10 years…”

Joe Ghartey, also Member of Parliament (MP) for Essikado, on Thursday, February 02, 2017, while being vetted by Appointments Committee of Parliament, emphasised that the Akufo-Addo-led government is committed to revamping the almost collapsed railway sector into a lucrative system.

Though the nominee is yet to receive approval from the committee as Minister, he has already met with the management of the Ghana Railway Company, and had come out with a three-year plan to make the railway sector viable.

Notwithstanding challenges such as encroachment, lack of finance and poor management afflicting the sector, Joe Ghartey indicated that there is a master plan that would serve as the bedrock upon which the Ministry would thrive.

The railway sector, though old but young as a ministry, will rely on self-generated funds and support from the government to address its financial challenges, without necessarily embedding the country with more borrowing and debts, he added.

He said the government will address the encroachment issues solely by negotiations to retrieve lands belonging to the railway company.

Since lands belonging to the railways are believed to be forcibly acquired or not duly paid for, Mr. Ghartey promised to use peaceful means to have the matter resolved, adding, “lots of time will be spent on negotiations and talks with chiefs. A lot of awareness will be involved in this.”

Currently, he said, there are several options available to Ghana to choose from to turn around the fortunes of the railway sector, and in order to work within a period of four years, he explained that his ministry wouldn’t waste time to choose options that are suitable for the country.

When pressed to know at what point in time Ghanaians would begin to see evidence of his vision, he said work will kick-start with the restructuring of the railway sector to enable reconstruction of the railways along the Eastern and Western lines, among others.

“We have the Eastern extension, and we have the Western extension. Along these lines lie some mineral deposits; the minerals are not economically viable, because we do not have access to those places… so we are focusing on redoing the Western line, the Eastern line, of course Tema Akosombo and the Central Spine. The total project will be US$21 billion,” he revealed.

He promised that if approved as the Minister for Railways Development, he would do whatever it takes, even if it will take the ministry to drill tunnels through hills to expand the railway network.

 

The post Ghana not ready for underground railway appeared first on The Chronicle - Ghana News.

Read Full Story