The Pokuase interchange, which is currently under construction in the Ga West Municipality may not see its proposed completion timeline as scheduled following the challenges associated with the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to contractors working on the interchange, most of the materials needed to execute the project have delayed in arriving due to the strict lockdown which was necessitated in China during the early days of the pandemic.
According to a consultant on the project, Kwabena Bimpong, in an interview noted that the completion date could be pushed past 2020 into 2021. He added that the contractor on the project says the current situation delaying the project is beyond his control as the imported equipment from China delayed by some two months.
“He [the contractor] has requested an extension of time. They had imported [from China] some parts for the bridge; like the scaffolding and the formwork and the piling equipment,” Mr. Bimpong said.
The pandemic has also affected the human resources of the project as some workers expected from China to aid in the project completion were unable to make the trip to Ghana.
Additionally, Mr, Bimpong added that some workers have contracted the coronavirus, hence, also accounting for the delay.
“When we tested some of our new entrants, as of yesterday we had gotten about 10 [persons contracting the virus]. Once they come in, they are not allowed to work.”
“At the last count, we had lost about 100 of them because they had disobeyed the orders of their employers,” Mr. Bimpong also noted.
The Expectations of the project
The Pokuase Interchange project comprises a four-tier interchange at Pokuase. This includes a five-kilometre Awoshie-Pokuase road, two-kilometre Accra-Nsawam road, two-kilometre Kwabenya road and 10 kilometres of local roads to reduce traffic in parts of Accra.
President Akufo-Addo as part of his transformation agenda for the year 2020, declared it “the year of roads.” The purpose of this is aimed at constructing new roads and also improve upon existing road networks across the country.
