The Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) says it was not involved in the decision to raise public transport fares by 20%, a move announced by the Ghana Road Transport Coordinating Council (GRTCC) and set to take effect on Friday, August 8, 2025.
Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Tuesday, August 5, GPRTU Public Relations Officer, Samuel Amoah, said the announcement came as a surprise since the union was not consulted.
“Yes, we’ve seen the release from GRTCC talking about the increasing transport fares by 20% this Friday. When we saw the communique, we were a bit surprised, because we have no idea about this very increment,” Mr. Amoah said.
He noted that fare adjustments are usually done jointly with GRTCC and the Transport Ministry after consultations and mutual agreement.
“What we normally do is that anytime there has to be an increment, the GPRTU, the GRTCC and the Transport Ministry will all come up with a joint statement. This has been the norm and what we’ve been practicing for all this while. So this time around, when we saw this communique, we were a bit surprised,” he added.
When asked whether GPRTU was part of any prior discussion, Mr. Amoah made it clear: “It’s very new to us. And two, we are not part of whatever agreement that they had. We were not informed, as we normally do. Nothing of that sort came to us as GPRTU.”
Meanwhile, GRTCC has defended the fare hike. In a joint statement signed by General Secretary Emmanuel Ohene-Yeboah and acting National Chairman Alhaji Tanko, the council said the increase followed the Administrative Arrangement on Public Transport Fares and was discussed with some transport unions.
The GRTCC cited three reasons for the hike:
Rising spare parts and input costs
A new GH₵1.00 per litre fuel levy that has raised fuel prices by 8%
Bad road conditions causing higher vehicle maintenance expenses
Despite the explanation, GPRTU’s disapproval has sparked fresh concerns over coordination and communication among transport stakeholders.
Also, the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) has opposed the fare increase, saying such a move is not justified under current conditions.
