Almost all the street lights that were installed on the 19-km Accra-Tema Motorway have vanished after three years. 

A Daily Graphic team recently observed that many of the street lights and poles installed in 2021 along the stretch have disappeared, while the few remaining poles are damaged.

The disappearance of the street lights has left authorities struggling to explain their whereabouts.

Despite the numerous public institutions involved in the project, none could provide the reasons for the missing street lights, with the Ghana Highway Authority, the Ministry of Roads and Highways and the Ministry of Energy pointing fingers at one another.

An insider of the Ministry of Energy told the Daily Graphic that the country's street lighting system required constant maintenance, which was not currently in place due to several bottlenecks.

King among those challenges, the source said, was a misunderstanding among some state agencies regarding the ownership of street lights and whose responsibility it was to maintain them.

On the motorway street lights specifically, the source said while the Ministry of Energy was responsible for their construction, the law required that they be handed over to local authorities with jurisdictional powers over the area where the lights are installed. 

Jurisdiction

The whole stretch of the motorway falls under the jurisdiction of different local authorities, and this situation has compounded the situation.

The source said officials of the Ghana Highway Authority had consistently pointed out to the ministry that the street lights were part of the road infrastructure, and, therefore, under the authority’s jurisdiction.

“There have been several arguments over who must be responsible for street lights over the years, and we need to come to an agreement on that as a nation,” the source said.

According to the Street Lighting in Ghana Policy Framework (2011), the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) are responsible for the development, installation, maintenance, replacement and operation of street lights within their respective jurisdictions.

The policy framework clarifies the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders in ensuring effective street lighting across the country.

“Consequently, all street lighting constructed by the public agencies— central government, the MMDAs, road authorities and the community—should be transferred to and owned by the local government authorities (MMDAs). Construction of community street lights shall be sanctioned by the MMDA,” it states.

It is in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government (Departments of District Assemblies) (Commencement) Instrument, 2009, (Legislative Instrument 1961).

Beyond the ownership and maintenance challenges, the source stressed that theft of road infrastructure, including street lights, was difficult to prevent on the motorway.

Indeed, contractors even reported that thieves stole from them while they were working on fixing the street lights, resulting in three transformers being replaced before the work was completed.

Situation

Presently, driving on the 19-kilometre Accra-Tema Motorway at night is hellish, as there are no street lights to provide the expected visibility.

In fact, even when about two-thirds of the stretch had been fixed with solar-powered street lights three years ago, motorists had cause to complain about poor visibility, especially on the outer lanes, due to the defective lights.

In 2021, the Director-General of the Ghana Standards Authority, Professor Alex Dodoo, told the Daily Graphic that the street lights did not conform to the country’s standard for street lighting.

Today, it is pitch dark driving on the stretch at night.

Street lighting is a necessity in road construction globally to ensure the safety of road users during the night and dark periods.

Among the various advantages of street lights, they provide safe passage to pedestrians by illuminating footpaths and also reveal pedestrians to motorists.

They also provide a sense of a safe environment at night and play a role in lowering the crime rate.

Drivers rely on improved visibility provided by streetlights during night drives to avoid collisions.

Street lights also enhance the safety and ability of pedestrians to manoeuvre along walkways and sidewalks without endangering themselves.