Drivers on Fiapre – Notre Dame Road complain over delay in construction of culvert

The Fiapre – Notre Dame road, that links up to the Catholic University College of Ghana and its environs, has been cut off, due to months of delay in construction of culvert.

This particular road, is one of the busiest roads in Fiapre, which is in the Sunyani West Municipality, due to the location of these two major schools along the road.

According to sources, within the people who work closer at where the construction work is being done, the contractor has not given out any definite date to open up the culvert to vehicular movement.

Kwame Nsiah, a tenant closer to where the culvert is being constructed, says ”we woke up one day to realise that, this portion of the road has curvedin, which nearly caused an accident – for which reason, we reported for a closure of the road”.

Eric Amponsah, one of the workers of a washing bay closer to this site, revealed that the same culvert was constructed in 2017 and was surprised at its collapse after nearly four years of construction works.

”This same culvert in 2017, was constructed to allow the running water from this side to the end. The culvert was expanded after we made a request to the Assembly about how this area got flooded anytime it rained”.

Taxi drivers who mostly ply on this stretch of road, have complained for the seemingly long delay in this re-construction of culvert. This to them, has affected their businesses.

Kofi Amoah, a taxi driver said ”those of us who load from town to Notre Dame and Catholic University have to charge an additional cost from Gh₵2.00 to Gh₵3.00 due to where we have to pass – the dusty and bad nature of where we have to use in order to get there informed the decision to increase the fare”.

According to Kofi Amoah, the drivers initially encountered some level of difficulty from passengers but the passengers have come to agree with them to pay for this unapproved fare.

Another taxi driver, Ben Nkansah, complained of the bad road they have to ply in order to get Notre Dame and Catholic University. ”I will now ply on that road only if one takes me on ‘dropping’ or else, i won’t use that poor road and go to magazine after the day’s work” he added.

Students, who were faced with acute shortage of cars to Notre Dame, after the Easter holidays on Tuesday, had to struggle to even hire a taxi to campus in order not to be late for reporting.

Naana Owusuaa, a first year student of Notre Dame Girls said ”i have been here for close to two hours without getting a taxi to campus. They are tell me they won’t go there because of the poor road and that i will have to take a ‘dropping’ in order to get to school”. She appealed to the appropriate authority to ensure that the contractor opens the culvert to vehicular movement to save the dire consequences.

 

Mr Richmond Nketiah, a parent who had travelled from Kumasi to bring his daughter to Notre Dame Girls Senior High School on Tuesday, shared his frustrations when he got to this scene, without knowing that the road has been blocked.

”How can this road be blocked to vehicular movement without signs of diversion”. He poured out his visible anger on the authority which clearly, failed to put in place any sign to communicate it to potential road users.