Accra, March 16, GNA – The Accra-Tema passenger train service will not resume full operations this week as planned.
This is due to the extension of test run on the railway tracks for one more month.
The Ghana Railway Company Limited (GRCL) had indicated that it would resume operations this week after multiple successful test runs on the Accra-Tema railway line.
But a source at the Company told the Ghana News Agency that the Minister of Railway Development, Mr John Peter Amewu, had called for additional test runs for one more month to “establish the integrity of the lines.”
The source said the Company had consequently scheduled to commence the extended test run on Thursday, March 17, 2022.
The source was not in the position to determine whether the shuttle service would resume immediately after the scheduled test run.
The Accra-Tema train shuttle was suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The GRCL said the suspension became necessary because the social distancing rules limited passenger intake – and that affected its revenue due to high cost of operation.
The Company said after the suspension, its engineers detected some “technical challenges” with the railway lines and had to work on them before service resumed.
Similarly, the Accra (Kantamanto)-Nsawam train shuttle was equally suspended in March 2020 to pave way for the construction of culverts at Taifa and other sections to provide buffer against flooding.
The GRCL told the GNA last week that it could not determine when passenger service would resume on that line due to ongoing construction works on some culverts at the Avenor and Taifa sections of the line.
The Company said it would only resume service on the 40-km line after all the maintenance works on the tracks had been fully completed to avert danger.
Following the surge in fuel prices and the recent increment in transport fares, the existence of a reliable and efficient passenger rail service could have served as an alternative for commuters who use the Accra-Nsawam and Accra-Tema corridor.
The rail shuttle provide affordable and faster transport services for many commuters and traders and reduce pressure on the road.
GNA