Drivers within the Mr Adjei community at Taifa, a suburb of Accra, say their time spent away from the mechanics has been reduced to just three days due to the treacherous road they have to drive on.
A visit by GhanaWeb to the community revealed roads in the community are inundated with potholes, mainly caused by erosion, a scene which could serve as a perfect example for teaching school kids the various types of erosion.
According to trotro drivers there, the condition of roads within the community especially the stretch from Hallelujah to the Adjei station, is so bad that their business has not been able to escape the effects.
“Our roads are not good at all, when we buy spare parts it only lasts for three days. The passengers complain a lot, because of the condition of the road when it rains it very difficult for us to operate.” A driver told Ghanaweb.
For the residents and drivers, their persistent calls for the roads to be fixed is yet to meet any attention at all.
The only time it looked like their roads were going to receive redemption was when work commenced on the stretch coming from Atomic roundabout. But the hopes of residents of Mr Adjei were short-lived as the road construction ended at their backyard, burger junction.
With the rains setting in, drivers are unable to use parts of the road and have resorted to an alternative route which is in no better condition.
According to one of the drivers, the pothole on those parts are so huge, rainwater gathers in them, creating what they describe as a ‘mini river’ which takes weeks and sometimes months to dry up.
“A lot of water has gathered on the road and whenever we pass through it, we have to go and buy a new axle, every three days we have to change something on the car. We have had to stop passing there, now we pass through people’s houses.”
For commuters, aside enduring the long bumpy rides, they also have to deal with the old-rickety buses.
Some say they have been injured several times from riding on the buses which they say, are in the same condition as the roads they ply.
Residents say they face various health complications from the dust the road and the cars generate, especially in the dry season. They say they annually have to repaint their houses because of the dust.
The people of Taifa-Mr. Adjei are appealing to government and all relevant authorities including their Member of Parliament, Sara Adjoa Safo to come to their aid.