The Ghana Railway Development Authority (GRDA) has officially announced the commencement of the passenger service on the Tema-Mpakadan rail system, drastically reducing travel time for commuters.
Dr Frederick Appoh, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the GRDA, confirmed the system’s operational status, noting that it offers a maximum transport time of just 18 minutes for passengers travelling the route.
Appearing on the “Frontline” programme on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Dr Appoh provided details on the service’s strong performance, revealing that it currently serves 4,822 passengers per week.
He highlighted the immense benefit to commuters from areas like Shai Hills, stating that their travel time to work at the Tema Harbour has been reduced from approximately two hours to a mere 18 minutes.
He added that passengers benefit from the fully air-conditioned comfort of the trains.
Dr Appoh outlined the authority’s strategic vision to replicate this successful operation across various railway stations nationwide.
He elaborated on the modern, efficient features currently in place on the Tema-Mpakadan line:
”The Tema-Mpakadan rail system is currently running strong and serving 4,822 passengers a week. Passengers from Shai Hills who work at Tema Harbour reach work in 18 minutes compared to regular transport, which takes two hours. They also enjoy a fully air-conditioned train while onboard. We have a plan to operationalise this system across the various train stations nationwide. This is a cashless system, and passengers can use a mobile application to track train arrival and departure times.”
He added that the goal of establishing an international standard for the railway service:
”Crucially, my management team and I aimed to introduce a global or international experience, and we have achieved that. I urge the public to patronise it. At the moment, we are setting this successful operation as a benchmark, and God willing, we are going to adopt this model across all other sectors of the Ghana Railway’s operations.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
