President John Dramani Mahama says Ghana’s planned 198.7-kilometre, six-lane Accra-Kumasi Expressway could transform travel between the country’s two biggest cities, cutting a journey that currently takes about five to six hours to approximately two hours.

Speaking at Kwaso in the Ashanti Region on Monday, September 14, 2026, during the official handover of the expressway’s cleared right-of-way by the Ghana Armed Forces, Mahama said the new road would offer motorists a much faster alternative to the existing Accra-Kumasi Highway.

Using a striking example to illustrate the expected impact, the President said motorists could leave Kumasi at 6 a.m. and arrive in Accra by 8 a.m. once the expressway is completed.

The proposed expressway will follow a different route from the existing highway and reduce the travelling distance between Accra and Kumasi significantly. It will feature three lanes in each direction, allowing slower-moving vehicles to remain on the outer lanes while faster traffic uses the inner lanes.

Mahama said the recommended speed on the expressway would be 120 kilometres per hour, adding that even motorists travelling at an average speed of about 100km/h could potentially complete the journey in roughly two hours.

“You can leave Kumasi at 6 a.m. and be in Accra by 8 a.m.”

— President John Dramani Mahama says the 198.7km, six-lane Accra-Kumasi Expressway will significantly cut travel time between the two cities.
He says motorists could complete the journey in about two hours at an average… pic.twitter.com/QPL7m0xm07

— CITI FM 97.3 (@Citi973) September 14, 2026

Beyond shortening travel time, the project is expected to improve road safety, strengthen movement of goods and people, and make same-day business trips between Accra and Kumasi more practical.

The expressway is also expected to include eight interchanges, rest stops, toll facilities, CCTV surveillance and roadside towing services. Space has additionally been reserved along the corridor for a possible future railway connection between the two cities.

President Mahama also announced that construction is expected to begin before Christmas 2026, with the government saying US$2 billion has already been placed in a special Bank of Ghana account toward financing the project.

If completed as planned, the expressway could dramatically reshape road travel between Ghana’s political and commercial capital and the Ashanti regional capital.