The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) will designate selected streets in the city’s central business district for traders, with vehicles barred from using them between 6am and 6pm. Traders will be allowed to operate there free of charge.
Gilbert Nii Ankrah, the AMA’s Head of Communications, announced the proposal on TV3’s New Day on Tuesday, November 10. He said the roads would be reserved solely for trading during the restricted hours.
“No vehicle will move towards these lanes at all, and they’ll be strictly for trading activities from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. for free,” he told the programme.
The plan forms part of the Assembly’s continuing 40-day decongestion exercise, which began on Monday and reached Lapaz on Tuesday. The operation has targeted hawkers and roadside stalls around bus stops and walkways in an effort to reduce congestion before Christmas.
Mr Ankrah said the number of traders in Accra had increased beyond the capacity of the city’s existing markets, leaving insufficient space to accommodate everyone.
The AMA is currently identifying the parts of the central business district with the largest concentrations of traders. The exact streets to be used are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
The Assembly also intends to expand existing markets as part of its longer-term response to the pressure on trading space.
The proposed trader-only lanes are separate from plans to close the Tudu and Cocoa Board–Kantamanto roads in December. Those roads are expected to provide additional space for Christmas trading.
Mayor Michael Kpakpo Allotey announced the December closures on November 7 under an initiative named Operation Let the Traffic Flow.
The AMA has said traders positioned behind the marked red lines on pavements in the central business district may continue operating. However, traders occupying bus stops will be required to leave.
According to the Assembly’s statement, any goods left at bus stops after the deadline will be seized and given to a children’s home.
