For many Ghanaian workers who depend on public transport to commute between home and work, the daily journey has become less predictable and more expensive. Despite recent downward pressure on fuel costs and official assurances of fare reductions, conductors on commercial minibuses known locally as trotros continue to charge what passengers describe as “Kasoa straight” rates irrespective of actual destination.
This practice, passengers say, is exploiting workers who already live on tight budgets and exacerbating economic strain on households across the Greater Accra region.
Commuters heading to and from work in the evening rush are frequently confronted with demands to pay full long‑distance fares, even when they plan to alight early. In some instances, mates, the assistants in the trotro, have turned aggressive when passengers refuse to pay inflated fares, insisting that everyone must pay as though they were travelling to the route’s final stop, such as Kasoa, Madina straight or Lapaz, regardless of where they board or plan to disembark.
In recent months, passengers and community groups have decried the practice online and at transport terminals. A video that circulated widely on social media showed a trotro mate demanding GHS 30 for a trip from Accra to Kasoa, nearly three times the officially approved rate.
The incident prompted calls on the Ghana Police Service to intervene and enforce lawful pricing after commuters described the fare demand as “daylight robbery.” Such complaints reflect growing frustration among commuters who feel left unprotected against arbitrary price hikes when transport supply is tight.
Workers interviewed for this report said the economic burden is real and unsustainable. A young office worker who asked not to be named said she was recently embarrassed and compelled to exit a trotro at Malam Junction after refusing to pay the Kasoa straight fare for a trip she knew would terminate earlier. “I didn’t have enough money to pay the Kasoa straight fare,” she said.
“When I boarded, they did not tell us it was going straight, but by the time we got to Lapaz they started shouting ‘Kasoa straight’ and insisting everyone pays that fare. I explained I wanted to get off at Malam Junction, but they still tried to force me to pay.” She said that after she alighted, there was still space on the bus, which was later filled by another passenger who paid the higher fee. Her experience echoes the complaints of many commuters who feel caught between official fare structures and arbitrary practices by drivers and mates.
Additional interviews reveal the subtle social pressure and humiliation that often accompany such confrontations. Naa, a young professional who commutes regularly along the Accra–Kasoa corridor, admitted that she sometimes chooses to pay the inflated “straight” fare simply to avoid public confrontation. “When you start arguing with the mate, it looks like you’ve reduced your steeze in the car,” she said. “Sometimes I don’t want the back-and-forth or the embarrassment, so even though it’s uncomfortable and unfair, I just pay the straight fare.”
Tabitha recounted a more defiant experience. On one occasion, when a trotro mate attempted to charge her above the approved fare, she informed him that she was low on cash. The mate, she said, responded by loudly shaming her in the vehicle. “It’s not that I don’t know the normal price,” she explained. “I knew he was cheating, and I refused to pay.” Despite the tension, she remained seated and only alighted at her intended stop. Her experience reflects a growing concern among commuters that some operators deliberately overcharge, assuming passengers are either unaware of the correct fares or unwilling to challenge them publicly.
Commuters argue that the situation is made worse because fuel prices have eased but those savings have rarely been passed on to passengers through reduced fares. In 2025, commercial transport unions announced a downward adjustment in fares following fuel price fluctuations, but compliance has been uneven, with some drivers continuing to charge old or higher fares despite official directives. Newspaper reporting in May 2025 showed that while some drivers adhered to fare reductions, others continued to charge old rates on major routes like Accra to Kasoa, leading to frequent disputes between passengers and operators.
Transport unions and municipal authorities have periodically attempted enforcement actions. In December 2025, the Accra Metropolitan Assembly mounted an evening crackdown on unapproved transport fares, arresting six drivers after verifying that they had charged above the regulated rates on busy corridors linking Accra to Kaneshie, Awoshie, Kasoa, and Lapaz. The mayor underscored the importance of compliance with fare regulations to protect commuters, but commuters say such enforcement efforts, while welcome, are sporadic and insufficient to deter the practice on a daily basis.
The Ghana Private Road Transport Union, which represents many commercial transport operators, has publicly urged commuters to resist paying illegal fares and to report offending drivers. The union’s public relations officer explained that any change to transport fares must be formally approved and communicated through official channels and that unlawful fare increases amount to cheating.
Economic analysts say the problem highlights broader structural gaps in Ghana’s urban transport system. With the majority of workers relying on informal commercial transport for commuting, inconsistent enforcement of fares and weak regulatory oversight can create daily economic shocks for low‑ and middle‑income earners.
A recent editorial in a national newspaper stressed that arbitrary fare exploitation amounts to economic injustice, particularly in peak hours when demand is highest and passengers are desperate to return home.
For Ghana’s workforce, many of whom budget every cedi to make ends meet, the continued pattern of inflated transport fares is more than an inconvenience; it is a growing economic burden on households already navigating tight wages and rising living costs. Commuters say it is time for sustained regulatory action, stronger passenger rights enforcement, and meaningful reform of the public transport sector to protect workers’ purchasing power and dignity in daily travel.
