Business News of Friday, 27 March 2020

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

Intercity transport operators decry low patronage amidst coronavirus outbreak

Intercity bus terminal in Accra play videoIntercity bus terminal in Accra

Operators of intercity transport services in Accra are recording one of their dry seasons as passenger traffic keeps declining due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Traveling by bus forms part of the transportation bloodstream through which coronavirus has rapidly spread.

Reports indicate that intercity bus terminals are complaining of hardly meeting even three trips a day.

GhanaWeb visited O.A Travel and Tours, one of the busiest bus terminals in Accra to ascertain the situation.

O. A. Travel & Tour is a Ghanaian registered company specializing in the provision of transport management services to the general public.

Their transport terminal is known to be one of the busiest places for travelers and other commercial activities.

But the outbreak of covid-19 is wrecking havoc for transport operations in this yard.

Micheal Owusu is a manager at the O.A. Travel and Tours and he tells GhanaWeb TV that the drop in patronage can be blamed on nothing but health risks associated with traveling.

“On the average, we could load over twenty-five buses but now, we even struggle to get three buses full in a day. The turnout is low. Everyone is just being cautious”.

According to him, it takes longer hours for coaches to be loaded halfway and forever to get a bus with passengers filled to full capacity.

Tens of buses are parked without knowing when it could be filled with passengers.

Some drivers at the terminal also shared similar experiences of having a bad business day.

They told GhanaWeb TV that although, safety measures have been put in place to stem the various outbreak, fear continues to scare travelers away.

Below is the full report