Management of VIP Jeoun Transport has defended its decision to increase transport fares, citing rising operational costs as the main reason for the adjustment.

The company said the decision follows months of maintaining existing fares despite mounting financial pressures, including increasing fuel prices, high spare parts costs and longer travel times on major routes.

Managing Director Adakabre Frimpong Manso, speaking to JoyNews on 7 April, clarified that VIP operates independently and is not bound by decisions taken by transport unions.

“VIP is a limited liability company, and we are not part of any union. The meeting we are led to believe is between the Transport Ministry is with the GRTCC and the GPRTU. This is a purely private company, and we make our own assessments. Where we believe we need to plug some holes, we have to plug them,” he explained.

According to him, worsening road conditions on key routes, particularly the Accra–Kumasi highway, have significantly increased operational costs.

“The buses spend a lot of time on the Accra-Kumasi route. Something that should have been six hours, we are spending up to 10 hours because of bottlenecks at Osino, Nkawkaw, Konongo, and sections of the road that are extremely bad,” he said.

He noted that the prolonged travel times have led to higher fuel consumption and maintenance expenses.

“That increases maintenance costs and also increases diesel consumption. Taking depreciation, wear and tear into consideration, it is even somewhat cheaper,” he added.

Mr Manso revealed that the company had planned to increase fares earlier but postponed the move following engagements with government officials. He also ruled out the possibility of reducing fares under current conditions.

“A reduction of prices does not come in at this stage. What in Ghana was 10 cedis two years ago that remains 10 cedis today? In March 2025, we were going to increase prices, but at the instance of the transport minister, we suspended those prices,” he stated.

Meanwhile, some passengers have expressed concern that the increase comes at a difficult time, as many households continue to face rising living costs.

Commuters noted that although transport operators face genuine operational challenges, frequent fare increases place additional strain on already tight household budgets.

The new fare adjustment is expected to take effect from 8 April.