By Felicia Sarfoa and Mary Dompreh:
Like one may agree, a short term inconvenience for long term comfort may be necessary at the one time or the other. In the face of this, aside the alternating dusts and soggy roads that road users are forced to endure in the face of the construction of the 15.8 km Somanya-Kpong road in the Yilo Krobo and Lower Manya Krobo municipalities respectively in the Eastern region, motorists, pedestrians, passengers, businesses and now residences can’t stop lamenting the seemingly unending inconveniences posed by the construction works.
Rite FM’s Felicia Sarfoa has been making the rounds to investigate at the first hand the issues that continue to confront road users especially regarding a by-pass or diversion created to steer motorists away from the Somanya roundabout where massive construction works are ongoing.
Aside the roaring complaints of what many of the road users described as the slow pace of work, drivers and passengers are also at their wits end owing to the bad nature of the road serving as the diversion. The diversions which run through the neighbourhoods of Okornya and Oduanya, both suburbs of Somanya are also narrow, so narrow that it’s impossible for big vehicles to ply or maneuver.
These diversions, temporal as they are, have become unwelcome developments also for people of these communities. While some complain of the noise from the vehicles which disturb them at various times of the day, others also fear for the safety of their children. Some landlords along the routes close to these roads have also complained about the safety of their buildings as a result of the huge vehicles that drive close to their homes.
Another cause of worry and inconvenience to residents and passers-by in the affected areas is the mud that has worsened after each downpour as a result of heavy vehicular use of the road, making movement to and from their homes quite difficult.
‘The diversion of the road is worrying us here so much and my building for instance has developed cracks and water is passing through it. The equipment which they use to work broke part of my building and I complained to the contractors about it and they promised to fix it but as I speak with you now, they have not honoured their promise,’ a bitter madam Veronica complained to Rite news.
Another resident of Oduanya who spoke with Rite news also complained that the stairway leading to his house has been broken by the vehicles.
But reacting to these developments, Mr. Eric Bissabah, site engineer with Blue Sky Constructions who are the contractors handling the works on the site explained to Rite news that it was the duty of the Town and Country Planning department to ensure that people built at the right places in order to ensure easy access to homes in times of fire outbreaks for instance, adding that some of the houses were too close to the roads.
Mr. Bissabah explained that the diversion of the road was done in consultation with the drivers’ union and the Assembly member of the area.
He however urged patience on behalf of all concerned and affected, assuring that the diversion would last just within a month.
Source: ritefmonline.org
