Tap n’ Go will never work with trotros

According to the GPRTU, the Tap n’ Go system touted by Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia as a game changer in public transport will not work with trotros. The Industrial Relations Officer of the union, Abass Moro stated this during an interview with Joshua Kodjo Mensah on Starr Today.

He pointed out that the system is good for long-distance and taxis but will fail if implemented for use with trotros. Explaining his reasoning, he said the trotro people operate on short distances and people join and alight intermittently making it unconducive for the system to function.

“Tap n’ Go can never work in trotro. He [Dr Bawumia] said what he thinks he should say, but it is not going to be workable because of the system trotro drivers are operating. It can be used in taxis and long-distance vehicles, but trotros no!”

“Trotros are mostly used for short distances and the way it operates; one joint, trotro can be full, move about a mile, half of the passengers will alight from the trotro, then you will be picking one after the other. Are you saying halfway the journey, if he is going to pick somebody and the network is not good for about five minutes, a trotro driver will be standing by one passenger?” he questioned, adding, “The answer is no! So it can never, never, never, work with trotro,” Abass Moro stated.

He stated that if the union was consulted they would have told the team the truth that the system would fail with trotros. But they weren’t involved in the process that is why this critical piece of information did not get to the parties involved in developing the system.

“If we were consulted, we would have told him the truth. Why would you tell lies to your brother to laugh, when in the end, your brother will meet the truth and be crying, it can never work. The trotro system we operate cannot operate any digital system.”

Also, he doubted the level of sensitization that has gone in regarding the system. Using the Aayolo BRT as an example, he said many people lost their money to the Aayolo cards. That he said was because the system was introduced and only worked for a little while.

“Have we educated our people enough to keep their money on cards? The first system introduced is the Ayololo. So many passengers have their money locked up on those cards as that system was abandoned halfway.”

Meanwhile, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia during the launch of Tap n’ Go said it was a remarkable achievement, tagging it as “revolutionary” for the country.

“The Tap n’ Go system is really remarkable. It’s revolutionary for us as a country because we are putting all public transport on one platform. So, if you get up and you go for a trotro over time, you should be able to tap and go. If you leave the trotro and you have to take a bus, you should be able to Tap n’ Go with Metro Mass.”