Parliament has given the green light for the reintroduction of road and bridge tolls through a fully electronic collection system after approving a 20-year Public-Private Partnership (PPP) concession between the Ministry of Roads and Highways and a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to be established by Rock Africa Limited.

The agreement is expected to pave the way for the deployment of a nationwide digital tolling infrastructure aimed at mobilising revenue for road development while eliminating the long queues and traffic congestion associated with the former manual toll collection system.

The approval followed consideration of a report by Parliament's Roads and Transportation Committee, with Members of Parliament debating the merits of restoring toll collection, which was suspended in November 2021.

During the debate, the Member of Parliament for Bimbilla and former Minister for Defence, Dominic Nitiwul, defended the previous administration's decision to abolish the tolls, explaining that it was taken in response to prevailing economic circumstances.

According to him, government sought to ease the financial burden on motorists at a time the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) had been introduced.

"The second reason, Mr. Speaker, is that we abolished the road tolls for one simple reason. We did not want to burden Ghanaians with both the e-levy and the road tolls. Basically, that was the reason," he said.

Mr. Nitiwul, however, threw his support behind the new electronic tolling arrangement, saying digital technology would address many of the operational difficulties that characterised the previous system.

"If the government decides that they will bring the road tolls, but it will be electronic, like what I have seen in South Africa, I think that I will support it," he stated.

He noted that motorists would no longer be required to stop at toll booths, making the payment process more convenient and reducing delays on major highways.

"If it’s electronic and it’s 20 years, I think it’s a good deal that Ghanaians should take. Because you will not even realise that there are road tolls. You pass, there will be a beep, and then you go; at the end of the month, they bring you a bill, and then you pay," he said.

He subsequently urged Parliament to back the concession, describing it as a practical mechanism for generating sustainable financing for the country's road infrastructure.

The concession agreement establishes the legal framework for private sector participation in financing, designing, operating and maintaining the electronic tolling network, which is expected to replace the discontinued manual collection regime with automated technology.

Government has argued that the digital platform will improve efficiency, reduce revenue leakages and provide a more reliable source of funding for the maintenance and expansion of Ghana's road network while offering motorists a seamless travel experience.