The Ghana Private Road Transport Union and the Ghana Road Transport Coordinating Council last Friday announced in a press release a15.3-percent reduction in transport fares taking effect from today.(See story on page ... ).
The reduction is said to be as a result of negotiations between the government, represented by the Ministry of Transport, and transport unions or associations.
It is good to hear that such negotiations are done in line with an Administrative Instrument.
That is to say that such negotiations are backed by law and so it should be expected that drivers and their mates in particular are aware of this and ready to comply with the new fares and by the approved percentage.
It is the case in this country that when fares are increased, transport operators add their own margins to the percentages announced.
They usually say their action is based on the fact that vehicles are not run by only fuel but also spare parts and other inputs.
We do not want a situation where the transport operators would present fares that are not up to the 15.3-per cent reduction.
The public know what fares they are paying now and so would work out the 15.3-per cent reduction and arrive at what to pay.
If there is a margin that would make the reduction lower than the expected figures, the transport unions should quickly come out with it.
We are calling for this because most often such differences in the fares the public expect to pay and the ones imposed on them bring about altercations between drivers and their mates on one side and passengers on the other.
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We believe commercial transport operators would heed the call by their unions on them to comply with the new fares but that call would do the public good only when the operators are charging the expected figures.
It is only when that happens that the general public can cooperate for the sucessful implementation of the new fares.
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Road Transport Operators have announced the new fares cover the following types of road transport operations thus shared taxis, Intra-city (trotro), Intercity (long distance and haulage).
The decision according to the transport operators follows the reduction in the prices of petroleum products.
Diesel is likely to be sold at GH¢15 per litre in the next pricing window on Friday, December 16, 2022, while the price of petrol is expected to drop further.
The Ministry of Transport further said it's negotiating with transport operators to reduce the fares to a margin that will be favourable to passengers and transport operators.
The Minister of Transport, MrOforiAsiamah, believes that "a reduction in the transport fare will bring some relief to commuters," who have for some time now borne the brunt of escalating prices of petroleum products
It would be recalled that on October 29, 2022, a 19 percent upward adjustment in public transport fare took effect after intense negotiations with stakeholders.
