GHA awards contract to stop rocks falling from Akuapem Ridge

The Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) has awarded a contract to CST Limited, a local company for repair works to stop rocks from falling onto the Aburi-Accra road.

The Chief Executive of the GHA, Mr Micheal Abbey, who made this known, said CST was required to provide slope repairs and protection to portions on the curve around the Ayi Mensah to Peduase Lodge, where rocks had been falling onto the Aburi-Accra section of the highway, a development that could cause a major disaster if not checked.

Mr Abbey said the contractor was expected to move to the site and begin work immediately.

Repair project

In recent times, boulders of different sizes and shapes from the Akuapem Ridge have landed on the shoulders of the road. Mr Abbey said the project was to prevent disaster of any kind by wiring the sedimented rocks together.

Last year, the Daily Graphic in a publication, drew attention to the imminent disaster that lurked on the curvy road on the Akuapim Ridge, as boulders perched precariously on one another, ready to fall at the least disturbance.

Mr Abbey explained that the nature of the work required a specialist, which took sometime for the GHA to identify.

He expressed the hope that CST Limited, with expertise in such projects, would work within schedule to restore safety on that stretch of the road.

Aburi road

The road, which also leads to the Peduase Lodge, is one of the two major routes to the Eastern Regional capital, Koforidua, hence there is a lot of traffic on it.

It is also the shortest route from Accra to the Aburi Botanical Gardens, which attracts tourists daily.

Human activities such as stone mining, building on the cliff and the reconstruction of the road, are said to have resulted in the current weakness in the rock formation.