KEY POINTS
- Ghana will reintroduce road and bridge tolls using digital technology.
- The government says the system will be efficient and transparent.
- Former toll workers may be re-engaged in other roles.
The Ministry of Roads and Highways has announced that Ghana will reintroduce road and bridge tolls as part of efforts to generate revenue for road maintenance and infrastructure improvements.
In a statement released on Thursday, February 6, 2025, the ministry said the new tolling system would be technologically driven to enhance efficiency, transparency, and accountability.
“To this end, the ministry is putting together the modalities for a modern, technologically driven toll collection system,” the statement read.
The procurement process, according to the ministry, will be “open, transparent, competitive, cost-effective, and fair” to ensure accountability in implementation.
Digital system to replace traditional toll booths
The decision aligns with comments made by Roads and Highways Minister Kwame Governs Agbodza, who confirmed the return of road tolls during his vetting before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on January 20, 2025.
“The road toll is coming back, but not in the form of building obstructions on the road,” Agbodza stated. “It will be based on a technological platform that makes it fair, easy to collect, and easy to account for.”
Furthermore, he criticized the previous administration’s suspension of toll collection, calling it “an act of illegality” that bypassed established laws.
According to Graphic Online, the Minister also noted that road fund accruals have increased significantly from GH¢250 million annually under former Roads Minister Inusa Fuseni to over GH¢2 billion currently.
Former toll booth workers may be re-engaged
Addressing concerns about workers who lost jobs when toll collection was suspended, Agbodza assured that the ministry would explore opportunities to re-engage experienced personnel in the new system.
“If we can re-engage them in other sectors, we should be able to do that,” he said.
According to the minister, Ghana faces critical road conditions because approximately half of the nation’s 100,000-kilometer road infrastructure demands speedy attention.
He explained the specific approach which centered on key high-priority segments that need improvement ahead of rainy season arrival.
“We need to take a holistic review of the road network and see what we can do to make quick interventions to those sections that are the worst,” Agbodza noted.
A reintroduction of tolls serves as the primary financial tool for generating resources to handle these road maintenance issues.
