There was joy among some pedestrians and drivers in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region when the Minister of Roads and Highways, Alhaji Inusah Fuseini, opened a 26.5-metre footbridge at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Junction in Kumasi Friday.
The area is popularly referred to as the “Bermuda Triangle” because of the frequency at which pedestrians are knocked down and killed by vehicles.
The footbridge that is disability friendly was completed within nine months.
It is intended to aid in the free movement of pedestrians including students to cross over the busy four-lane dual carriageway safely.
Footbridges
The KNUST footbridge is part of four pedestrian bridges in areas prone to accidents. The others are sited at Tetteh Quarshie, Mallam Market and Shiashie all in the Accra metropolis.
Three of the projects have since been completed with the remaining one scheduled for completion at Shiashie in January next year.
The projects were jointly funded by the Austrian and Ghana governments at a cost of 7.6 million euros.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic, at the inaugural ceremony in Kumasi, an elated resident, Ms Faustina Amankwah, said “people’s lives would now be saved. We thank the government”.
According to her, a brother, whose name she did not mention, was knocked down and killed by a vehicle when he tried crossing the road about two years ago.
Mr Richard Allotey, a Level 400 student of the KNUST, said the bridge had brought relief to students who dreaded crossing the road because of the fear of being knocked down by speeding vehicles.
Appeal
The minister appealed to students and other pedestrians to always use the footbridge instead of trying to cross the road.
Alhaji Fuseini also advised the city authorities to ensure that the bridge was not turned into a hawking place.
The Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive, Mr Kojo Bonsu, gave an assurance that the assembly would construct places of convenience for pedestrians near the footbridge.
