Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has cut sod for works to begin on the Grade Separation of the Tema Motorway Intersection as part of the Improvement of Ghanaian International Road Corridors project.

The Motorway forms an integral part of the Trans-Africa Highway, stretching from Lagos through Lomé, Accra, and Abidjan to Dakar, and effectively serves as the junction to the Sub-region.

Phase One of the Grade Separation project, which began in February 2018 and will last for 28 months, will see the construction of 2.1 km three lane Dual carriageway with 730m Underpass on the National route N1; Improvement of approximately 1.9km two lane Dual carriageway on the National Route N2 from the Ashiaman Roundabout onto the Harbour Road; construction of Service Road Ramps, retaining wall and box culvert, road base and pavement; construction of Pedestrian Bridges; and provision of adequate Road Safety furniture to safeguard lives and property.

Phase Two of the project commences after the successful completion of Phase One comprises the construction of a flyover on the Akosombo -Tema Harbour Road, according to officials of the Ghana Highway Authority.

The project will also conduct detailed design improvements for rehabilitation of National Trunk Road N8 in the Central Region.

The Japanese government is providing the funding of approximately $55.6m through the Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA).

Speaking at the Ground Breaking ceremony on Wednesday 18th July, 2018, Vice-President Bawumia said the grade separation works were in line with Government’s agenda of enhanced national development through the provision of the necessary road infrastructure to facilitate the developmental goals and social aspirations of the people.

Kwasi Amoako-Attah, Minister for Roads and Highways, explained that the Tema Motorway Grade Separation project was part of a larger undertaking to open up the road connection between Accra and the port city of Tema as well as open arterial roads within Tema.

“Let me assure all Ghanaians that this project is not a stand-alone one. It is going to bring a lot of benefits in two areas: It is going to create (1) what we call Tema Arterial Roads and (2) Tema Motorway Project. By the time this project.

“By the time we complete the construction of this project the Tema arterial roads linking this roundabout to the ongoing port expansion being undertaken by Meridian Port Services would have come to an end. We are going to open up all arterial roads from this roundabout to link the port expansion project through the Tema Hospital road into a dual two-by-three lane road.”

He continued, “At the same time it will link Tema Motorway with the Tetteh Quarshie interchange in Accra, and the project is designed in such a way that by the time this particular project comes to a close the Tema motorway, as part of the Abidjan-Lagos project, which is being turned into a 6 lane dual carriage highway, would have also come to an end and it has been remodelled and redesigned to take the current congestion at the Tetteh Quarshie interchange.”

Amoako-Attah expressed confidence that the completion of these projects would ease the terrible traffic congestion at the Tetteh Quarshe interchange because of the Accra Mall, and make travel on the International Corridor easier, to facilitate trade in the sub-region.