The Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) has directed commercial drivers who have increased their fares without approval to immediately return to the previous charges.
The directive comes after passengers complained that some drivers had started charging higher fares even though no new transport fare had been officially approved.
According to the GPRTU’s Deputy Public Relations Officer, Samuel Amoah, the proposed fare increase has been suspended until the end of August.
He explained that the decision was reached after the Union met with the Ministry of Transport. The two sides agreed to put the fare adjustment on hold after the government decided to absorb GH¢2 of the diesel price.
“We have been receiving some complaints that some drivers are increasing transport fares. I want to state it clearly that transport fares have not increased. The processes we go through before increasing transport fares is clearly there,” he said.
Mr Amoah warned drivers who have already increased their fares to immediately return to the old charges. He also urged all drivers to follow the directive and asked passengers to report anyone charging an unapproved fare.
“Drivers who have increased transport fares, we are telling them that they should quickly reverse the price to the old fares. If you board a vehicle and the driver says he has increased the transport fare, if he falls under the union, you can quickly report to the union officers. If the driver is a floating driver, you can equally report to any police officer around for the officer to intervene,” he said.
The GPRTU is therefore reminding both drivers and passengers that the current transport fares remain unchanged until an official adjustment is approved.
