Okada, towing and digital fines: What Ghana’s new road rules mean for motorists

Ghana is stepping up public education on its revised road traffic laws, with government drawing attention to new requirements covering commercial motorcycles and tricycles, vehicle breakdowns, driver licensing, road safety and the digital enforcement of traffic offences. The nationwide dissemination exercise is focused on the Road Traffic (Amendment) Act, 2025 (Act 1153) and the Road Traffic Regulations, 2026 (L.I. 2519), which provide an updated regulatory framework for road transport in Ghana.

The regulations replace the Road Traffic Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2180) and comprise 247 regulations covering areas including vehicle registration and licensing, construction and use of vehicles, commercial transport, automated enforcement, as well as schedules relating to forms, road signs, fines and notices. The exercise is being led by the Ministry of Transport in collaboration with the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) and the Motor Transport and Traffic Directorate (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service.

New rules for Okada operations A major feature of the revised framework is the formal regulatory architecture for commercial motorcycle, tricycle and quadricycle operations. The regulations provide specific requirements for operators, including licensing and registration, as government moves to bring commercial motorcycle operations within a clearer regulatory framework. Minister of Transport Joseph Bukari Nikpe said the changes are intended to provide a modern legal framework for the sector while improving safety and expanding opportunities for people seeking to operate in commercial transport.

He said the reforms include adjustments to the minimum age for driving and stricter provisions on alcohol levels among drivers. “The alcohol concentration in drivers to ensure that our drivers don’t sit at the back of the wheel drunk or having any alcohol concentration that is so high. Again, we also reduce the age for driving from 25 to 21.” Mr Nikpe said the amendments were also intended to bring Ghana’s road transport regulatory framework in line with developments in other jurisdictions.

“We wanted to give effect to the amendments we made, so we went back to Parliament with the passage of the L.I. 2519 to enforce or to have a legal framework that will be up to date with other frameworks in the sub-region or within the wor…