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Construction of the first section of the Accra-Tema Motorway and Extensions Project has reached 53 per cent completion, with contractors targeting August 2027 to complete the ongoing works.
The update comes as Accra-Tema Expressway Limited (ATEL), the concessionaire responsible for the project, launches a dedicated website to provide the public with information on construction progress, traffic diversions, project milestones and road safety notices.
The website, www.atexpresswayltd.com, is expected to serve as an information platform for motorists, residents, businesses and other road users affected by the construction.
Speaking at the launch in Accra on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, ATEL Chief Executive Officer Louis Harrison said the project was intended to restore the motorway to a standard commensurate with its importance to Ghana’s transportation system and economic development.
He said the motorway, which was opened in 1965, now carries approximately 60,000 vehicles daily, placing considerable pressure on infrastructure originally designed to accommodate much lower traffic volumes.
The motorway serves as a major transport corridor connecting Accra, the national capital, to Tema, an important industrial centre and the location of Ghana’s principal seaport.
Project progress
Chief Resident Engineer for the project, Kwabena Bempong, said the first section had achieved 53 per cent completion after 805 days of construction, although progress remained slightly behind schedule.
He expressed confidence that the contractor, Maripoma Enterprise Limited, would intensify work to meet the August 2027 completion target.
The project, which commenced in August 2024, covers approximately 27.7 kilometres across three sections. These comprise the 19.5-kilometre stretch currently under construction, a 5.7-kilometre section between Tetteh Quarshie and Apenkwa, and a 2.5-kilometre portion of the N6 near the Tesano Police Station towards Achimota.
Mr Bempong said the first section would combine a two-lane, access-controlled expressway with an urban highway featuring three lanes in each direction.
Selected sections would be widened to five lanes in each direction to improve traffic merging and movement between the expressway and the urban highway.
The works also include improvements to interchanges at Tetteh Quarshie, Teshie, Community 18 and Lashibi, alongside pedestrian crossing facilities designed to improve access between communities on either side of the motorway.
The project incorporates 20 box culverts and three bridges at various stages of construction.
Bridges and road structures
During a site inspection, Project Manager Benjamin Sackey said concrete structures were approximately 70 per cent complete, while about four kilometres of road base course had been laid and were ready for asphalt paving.
He said seven footbridges were at different stages of construction, with two bridges on the urban highway section already completed.
Two of the three interchanges had also reached an advanced stage of completion, according to the project manager.
The pedestrian facilities are expected to provide safer crossing points for people living and working along the corridor, while the interchange improvements are intended to ease traffic movements and reduce conflicts between vehicles.
Public-private partnership
Mr Harrison said the project was being implemented under a 30-year public-private partnership (PPP) concession through which ATEL would finance, reconstruct, expand, operate and maintain the motorway and its extensions in collaboration with the government.
The Ministry of Roads and Highways and the Ghana Highway Authority are the public-sector partners, while Maripoma Enterprise Limited is undertaking the engineering, procurement and construction works.
The Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF) is sponsoring the project.
Mr Harrison said the overall financing requirement was approximately US$380 million, with the final financing structure partly dependent on the toll rate to be approved.
Although the concession agreement had received parliamentary approval, the proposed toll amount was yet to be determined and would be submitted to Parliament for consideration.
He said ATEL was also exploring financing arrangements with domestic banks in local currency to minimise exposure to foreign-exchange fluctuations.
The company was considering potential long-term financing from pension funds to support the development of subsequent sections.
Preparations for the second and third sections were underway, with the concessionaire seeking to overlap their implementation to keep the overall programme within 48 months.
GIIF backs transparency initiative
The Deputy Managing Director for Investment at GIIF, Bennett Akantoa, described the launch of the project website as an important step towards improving public access to information about the motorway reconstruction.
He said the platform would strengthen transparency, promote public trust and provide a channel through which the media and social media users could obtain updates on construction activities.
Mr Akantoa acknowledged public concerns about the duration of the works and the continued disruption associated with the construction.
He expressed the hope that regular updates would help explain the project’s progress and provide road users with a clearer understanding of the activities taking place.
He said the project was consistent with the government’s broader objective of improving road infrastructure and addressing the country’s growing transportation needs.
Financing challenges
Senior Partner of AB and David Africa and a member of the project’s Independent Project Advisory team, David Ofosu-Dorte, said the project had undergone several financing and procurement processes since 2019 before the current public-private partnership arrangement was established.
He said earlier assessments had identified a funding viability gap of nearly US$100 million, while the cancellation of road tolls in November 2021 had affected investor confidence.
According to him, the project was subsequently divided into phases to enable the first section to proceed and establish a foundation for financing the remaining works.
The ongoing reconstruction is expected to improve traffic movement, road safety and connectivity along the Accra-Tema corridor, which supports daily commuting, commercial transport and freight movement between the capital and the industrial port city.
With the first section now reported to be 53 per cent complete, attention will be on whether the contractor can accelerate construction to meet the August 2027 deadline and how the financing arrangements for the remaining sections will be secured.
