Passengers boarding a lorry which operated between Accra and Sekondi in the 1920s
The construction of the railway system from scratch constituted an important item on the menu of the colonial authorities, and they worked on it as though their lives depended on it.
By December 31, 1927 493 miles of railway were opened, the existing routes at the time being Sekondi to Accra – 362 miles, Prestea Branch –18 miles, Inchaban branch – four miles, Weshiang Branch – 10 miles and Central Province Branch – 99 miles; bringing the total railway lines to 493 miles.
According to the Gold Coast Handbook 1928 “The 39-mile-line from Sekondi to Tarkwa was started in 1898. The project suffered some challenges and so only reached Tarkwa on April 17, 1901. In July of that year an extension was commenced, and Obuasi, a distance of 124 miles was reached by the end of 1902. The portion of line from Sekondi to Obuasi was handed over by the construction engineers to be worked upon by the Open Lines Department on July 1, 1903. The line was further extended from Obuasi to Kumasi, in all 168 miles from Sekondi, in 1903, and wa handed to Open Lines on April 1, 1904.”
Following the completion of a survey in 1905 for a railway line from Accra to Akwapim, Governor Sir John Rodger cut the sod for commencement of work on it in January 1909.
The section of the line from Accra to Nsawam was opened on August 27, 1910. Nsawam to Mangoase was completed in March 1913 and the 13-mile extension from Mangoase to Koforidua was opened for public use in February 1915.
A further extension of 13 miles from Koforidua to Tafo was opened on June 1, 1917. “The construction of a thorough line from Accra to Kumasi through the Kwahu Plateau was ultimately sanctioned and work was started thereon from the terminus of the Accra-Akwapim Railway at Tafo and from Kumasi simultaneously. Rapid progress was made and the following routes completed. Tafo to Nkawkaw – 44.5 miles and Kumasi to Juaso – 46 miles, and opened for traffic in November 1922,” the handbook adds.
The remaining portion of the line from Juaso to Nkawkaw was taken over by Open Lines on July 1, 1923 and opened for traffic on September 3, 1923 at a time trains operated between Accra and Kumasi and vice versa.
The construction of the Tarkwa-Prestea-Bromasie branch, a distance of 20 miles, was commenced in April, 1908 and opened for traffic on January 11, 1911. In 1919 the two-mile between Ankobra Junction and Broomasie was taken up after the closing up of the Broomasie Mine. The revenue earned did not warrant the continued running of the line.
In September 1923, construction of the Central Province Railway was commenced. The line, about 99 miles, runs from a north-easterly direction from Huni Valley on the Sekondi main line to Kade.
Tariffs of freights and time tables were published by the Railway Department and changes notified regularly in the Government Gazette.
Records have it that the number of passengers who traveled by train between 1926 and 1927 was 1,452,915, the revenue being two hundred and twenty four thousand and thirty one pounds. The goods tonnage moved during the same period was 805,630 tons, an increase of 8,370 tons from 1925-1926.
The construction and maintenance of railways was regulated by Cap 109 which vested in the Government of the Gold Coast the power to construct and maintain railways.
Under a Proprietary Ordinance Cap 110, government may bestow upon a licence to others to construct a railway for the conveyance of goods and passengers on such terms and conditions as it may deem appropriate.
A special ordinance authorized the Prestea Railways Ltd to construct a railway, and gave that company leave to acquire by compulsory purchase lands for that purpose from Broomasie to Fura Junction. Messrs Millers Limited owned a small tramway, three miles in length which connected River Tano with the sea at Half Assine.
Roads
Roads were considered important feeders to the railway lines but the cost of maintenance was too high. A number of factors were responsible for the difficulties in maintaining the roads.
The heavy downpours in the rainforest areas which often washed away bridges and affected badly the quality of roads were some of the factors.
These, nonetheless, roads were considered important in opening up areas otherwise closed to the world somewhat.
The Public Works Department one-time one of the leading government entities was responsible for the construction of roads in the Gold Coast.
To maintain these roads, there were road camps along the road network which were responsible for the maintenance of these roads.
In the late 1920s the length of motorable roads, excluding town roads was 1,487 miles, of which 270 miles were metalled and tarred and the remaining 1,217 miles graveled. It was common in the 60s for the graveled roads to be smoothened using tractors with a heavy discarded metal being pulled along.
It is also interesting to note that in the late 1920s some 3,815 miles of roads were maintained by chiefs, the nature of which maintenance is unknown.
Roads were numbered for ease of identification, the numbers 100 to 199 being allotted to the Eastern Province of the Colony, 200 to 299 Central Province, 300 to 399 Western Province, A.1 upwards to Ashanti and N.T. 1 upwards to Northern Territories.
A mechanical transport department for certain essential services, the headquarters of which was in Accra and sub-stations at Sekondi, Kumasi and Tamale, was an important government unit.
Repair shops were maintained in Accra and Kumasi, in addition to which was the running of a motor mail service between several centres.
Most of the trading companies, African and European, maintained their own fleet of cars and lorries used for the carting of cocoa and other produce from outlying districts to the railway or ports, the Gold Coast Handbook 1928 narrates.
In the 1920s some companies hired out cars and lorries. Swanzy’s Motor Transport Department, Accra; Elder’s Road Transport Limited, Nsawam; Kamel Brothers, Kumasi and Tamale; Kumasi Garage Company, Kumasi; Millers Limited, Half Assinie; G. Rahm, Accra; and G.A. Silcock, Sekondi were some of them.
Adra Brothers based in Accra was another of the companies—their base being in Tudu.
By A.R. Gomda