NO MORE TALK, GHANAIANS START PAYING 8% MORE FOR TROTRO AND TAXI FARES FROM TODAY

For millions of Ghanaians heading out this morning, the cost of simply getting from one place to another has officially gone up.

The nationwide 8% increase in public transport fares takes effect today, Saturday, September 26, turning days of announcements and negotiations into a direct hit on the daily transport budgets of commuters.

The adjustment applies to shared taxis, intra-city trotros, intercity long-distance transport and haulage services following an agreement between the Ghana Private Road Transport Union, the Ghana Road Transport Coordinating Council and the government.

It means passengers who paid one amount yesterday could be asked to pay more for the same journey today.

And while 8% may appear modest on paper, the impact becomes more significant for workers, traders and students who depend on public transport several times every day.

A GH¢15 approved fare, for example, rises to GH¢16.20.

A GH¢20 fare becomes GH¢21.60.

For intercity travellers, GH¢50 becomes GH¢54, while a GH¢100 journey rises to GH¢108.

A GH¢300 long-distance fare becomes GH¢324.

For shared taxis, journeys of up to one kilometre move from GH¢1.70 to GH¢1.90, while journeys of up to 20 kilometres rise from GH¢8.50 to GH¢9.20.

The increase could be felt particularly strongly in Ghana's major cities, where public transport remains central to everyday life.

Daily Graphic reports that official statistics indicate more than 80% of urban residents depend on public transport for their daily commute.

That means an 8% increase is unlikely to remain simply a transport story.

Higher transport costs can feed into the prices traders charge for moving goods, the cost of commuting to work and school and ultimately household expenditure.

The increase follows a heated negotiation between transport operators and the government.

The GPRTU initially pushed for a 30% fare increase, arguing that fuel prices, spare parts, maintenance and other operating expenses had increased substantially.

At one stage, government officials were pushing against an increase altogether.

But the transport unions insisted that returning to their drivers without any adjustment would be difficult to justify.

“We were pushing for 30% and not coming down,” GPRTU Deputy Public Relations Officer Samuel Amoah said while discussing the negotiations.

Government subsequently pointed to interventions intended to reduce pressure on transport operators, including measures targeting diesel prices.

After negotiations, the two sides eventually settled on 8%.

“We jaw-jaw and at the close of the meeting, we all came up with an agreement that we will come up with 8% increment which will take effect on Saturday, September 26,” Amoah said.

The compromise prevented the much steeper increase originally demanded by transport operators.

But for passengers, the argument over whether fares could have risen by 30% will provide little comfort when they are reaching deeper into their pockets from today.

The adjustment also comes after some operators had reportedly begun charging unauthorised higher fares on certain routes before the official increase.

Transport unions have now instructed operators to display the approved fare schedules prominently at terminals and stations.

Drivers are not permitted to simply invent their own increases on top of the approved rates.

The GPRTU and GRTCC have warned that operators charging above the authorised fares could face sanctions.

That distinction will be particularly important from today as passengers and drivers adjust to the new prices.

An 8% nationwide adjustment does not mean a driver is automatically entitled to demand any amount he chooses.

Passengers are expected to be charged according to the officially approved fare schedule for their routes.

The increase also reverses part of the relief commuters received last year.

Public transport fares were reduced by 15% in May 2025 following declining fuel prices and appreciation of the Ghana cedi.

Conditions have since shifted.

Transport operators say rising petroleum prices, spare parts and vehicle maintenance expenses have increased the cost of keeping commercial vehicles on the road.

The unions acknowledged that government intervention on diesel helped prevent an even larger fare increase.

But the compromise ultimately leaves passengers carrying part of the additional cost.

And that is where today's adjustment becomes politically and economically sensitive.

For government and transport operators, 8% represents a negotiated middle ground between the 30% initially demanded and efforts to prevent another increase in the cost of living.

For the passenger standing at a trotro station this morning, however, the calculation is considerably simpler.

Yesterday's fare is gone.

From today, getting to work, school, the market or another city costs more.

And when that additional amount is multiplied across two, three or four journeys a day and then across an entire month, an 8% increase can become a much larger household expense than the percentage initially suggests.