According to Mr. Mahama, such punishments will serve as a deterrent to contractors who offer substandard services.

He observed that there are instances where road projects which are supposed to have a lifespan of between 15 to 25 years only give away after two or three years.

[contextly_sidebar id=”8Z4XqQJmSTkYAkaLxHzWcfkEILcUlgod”]“…If we do not start to blacklist contractors in the country, then we have nowhere to go. There are asphalt roads which are being constructed in this country, and the minimum years for asphalts roads are supposed to be about 15 to 25 years but now we have asphalt roads which are just lasting for three to four years and they are breaking. This is because the contractors are hiding under the cover of defect liability period. After one year the contractor is paid his final certificate, he walks off, the road gets spoilt, and nobody charges that contractor,” Mr. Mahama said on the Citi Breakfast Show on Monday.

He made the remark while commenting on why he thinks concrete roads are not the solutions to Ghana’s fast deteriorating road infrastructure.

The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia over the weekend said Cabinet has approved the construction of roads in the country with concrete, adding that they will use the Tema Steel works road as a pilot project.

But Mr. Mahama shot down the decision saying aside being too expensive, concrete roads are also difficult to repair.

“When constructing a kilometer of concrete road, let’s just say the last layer that will cost you about GHc1.85 million. Let’s say you are taking 7 meters per width by 1000 meters. The asphalt will cost you about GHc1.3 million, that’s the final layer. But all the components underneath the concrete or asphalt are the same. The concrete roads or the asphalts are only the finished roads. The methodology of any road construction right from the subgrade to formation, to sub-base to base, that is where the meat lies. If you don’t compact your sub-base and natural base well and you put the concrete on the road, however extensive it is, it will fail. Have we thought about the noise between the track and concrete in the vicinities? Have we thought about the wear and tear of the tyres that wears easily?”

Mr. Mahama also explained that, it is time-consuming undertaking maintenance works on concrete roads saying “it creates a lot of discomfort.”

He said “when you are repairing the concrete [road], you need days and weeks before you can bring traffic back whereas when you are doing repair works on asphalt roads, you’d be done in few days.”

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post Blacklist contractors who carry out shoddy works – Engineer appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Some of the drivers in the course of the protest blocked the main road linking those areas claiming that it had been in a deplorable state for close to ten years now.

The aggrieved drivers burnt tyres on the road and prevented workers and students from plying the route.

Chanting “we want roads,” the commercial drivers claimed that the road has destroyed their vehicles and they are compelled to spend huge sums of money in fixing them every day.

One of the drivers told Citi News that “we spend between GHc50 and GHc200 every day to fix our vehicles.”

A lady resident who also joined the protesters claimed that she lost her three-month-old pregnancy while plying the road.

“I lost a three-month old pregnancy because of this road. If you want to confirm it, we can go to the police hospital and I can show you.”

“We are appealing those who are supposed to construct the road for us that if the contract is awarded they should come on site and do the work; but if it’s not been awarded then we are pleading with the government to award it immediately. All that we are demanding for is to get good roads,” another driver added.

There have been several of such complaints in most areas across the country.

Meanwhile, police officers have been deployed to the place to ensure law and order.

The drivers and residents have been asked to put off the fire and open the road for motorists.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey & Philip Nii Lartey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post Angry Ablekuma drivers protest over bad road appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.