The Bus Rapid Transit Project in Accra, Ghana

Rapid motorization and growing vehicle ownership are increasingly becoming major contributory factors to traffic congestion experienced in cities around the world, especially in developing countries. This phenomenon has necessitated the need for innovative sustainable solutions that promote public transportation in urban areas. One of such innovations is the development of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems which has gained popularity over the years particularly in Latin America, Asia and gradually in Africa. Whilst some city authorities have been successful in its implementation, others have failed due to financial, political, regulatory and institutional challenges, the latter being the less discussed in literature. In a bid to improve urban mobility in Accra, city authorities in the year 2008, embarked on a BRT Project which was expected to be deployed by 2012. However, almost a decade after its commencement, the project could not be realized as planned; but was launched in 2016 as a Quality Bus Service (QBS) without dedicated bus lanes. It is against this backdrop that this research sought to explain the institutional factors which affected the implementation of the BRT project in Accra. A qualitative research approach was adopted with a total of 17 interviews conducted with key actors from stakeholder institutions which participated during the implementation of the project. Findings from the study were triangulated with project evaluation reports and scientific articles with theoretical support of the institutional thickness framework. Institutional thickness as employed in this study, comprises of and was measured by the following institutional factors under which the project was implemented: institutional presence, level of interactions, power relations and sense of common agenda. The study made two comparisons; the first was made between a prototype institutional thickness situation developed in this study and institutional conditions that existed during the original phase (2008-2012) and the pilot phase (2013-2016) of implementation. The second compared the state of implementation between the two phases allowing for the explanation of how changes in institutional thickness factors accounted for varying states of implementation. The study revealed that the institutional thickness during the original phase of the project was relatively lower than in the pilot phase; though the situation in both periods fell short of the proposed model. This research proved that the improved institutional thickness over time accounted for the improved state of implementation in the pilot phase. The study found that the following factors hindered implementation during the original phase of the project: the non-existence of a cross-jurisdictional authority to oversee the urban passenger transport sector in the project area; the lack of ownership arrangements for existing bus operators in the city to belong to the proposed BRT scheme; the distrust among transport operators towards project implementers; and the inadequate capacity of stakeholders in BRT. The improvements made in these aforementioned factors over the periods accounted for the positive progress in implementation during the pilot phase. Considering that all external factors employed in this study remained comparatively similar for both periods, the eventual piloting of the QBS in Accra was therefore possible with the combined effects of enhanced institutional presence, increased level of interactions, improved power relations and a well-sustained sense of common agenda among stakeholders. The Accra case as revealed in this study showed that executing BRT concurrently with institutional reforms proved to be a risky task; as the distrust among existing transport operators led to a prolonged resistance and opposition to sector reorganization initiatives; hence jeopardized the chances of successful implementation. It is recommended that subsequent BRT initiatives in any city in Ghana should proceed after the reform of the city’s transport sector taking particular interest in establishing a cross-jurisdictional authority if the BRT is to operate across more than one jurisdiction; ensuring part or full ownership of BRT scheme by existing transport operators; building stakeholders’ capacity in BRT prior to actual implementation; and enacting and enforcing urban transport by-laws.