Ignore the 20% increase in transportation fares– GPRTU dismisses private drivers proposal

The Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), has asked commuters to ignore the 20 percent increment in fares announced by other private transport unions, over the weekend.

The General Secretary of GPRTU, Godfred Abulbire, said the increment is unfair to commuters.

“When we are even given the freehand by the government to adjust the fares the way we want, you think the GPRTU will increase it by beyond 20 percent? If you go by more than 30 percent, you are virtually killing your business because the effect actually goes to the customers who put us in business. So we are mindful of that.” he said as quoted by Citinewsroom.

“Those who have planned to increase the fares are on the minute side, but GPRTU and GRCC cut across the whole country and the mother body that hosts all other transport unions. So we ask our customers and the general public to ignore the publication because it does reflect the true decision of what GPRTU is negotiating with the government”, he admonished.

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Some private transport operators agreed to increase transport fares by 20 percent effective Monday, May 17, 2021.

A joint statement issued by the operators said the increment has been necessitated by different factors including new taxes on fuel, the cost of vehicle spare parts and charges levied by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA).

The intended increment according to the unions has become necessary in view of the number of taxes on fuel announced by the government in the 2021 Budget, and subsequently approved by Parliament.

The unions include the Ghana Committed Drivers Association, International Drivers Road Transport Union, Truth Drivers Union, Concerned Drivers Association as well as other unions and associations.