Taxis and "tro-tros" are the primarily modes of transportation in Ghana. It is somewhat unusual for a person to own a car. Taxis and tro-tros are widely available even in remote areas.
People wait for a taxi or tro-tro at the side of the road and use gestures to indicate to passing drivers (1) which mode of transportation they want to take, and (2) where they want to go. A few weeks passed before we started to understand the meaning of the various gestures!
Taxis driving through Takoradi Market Circle
Taxis are similar to those at home to the extent that they are typically small cars. Unlike those at home, most taxis are in a poor state of repair. In one instance, we waited in a taxi while the driver performed some mechanical adjustments under the hood to ensure that we would reach our destination. The condition of the vehicles can be attributed to both their age (most have cassette players) and the poor condition of many roads. [As an aside, many roads are so full of potholes that small children attempt to fill the holes with dirt in exchange for small tips from taxi drivers. These's no doubt that some municipal workers in Ontario could learn a think or two from these children.]
Almost all taxis are decorated by the driver with some type of religious sign or slogan (e.g., "Jesus Saves!", "God is Good!", "Allahu Akbar", or "Psalm 21"). Many drivers also paste stickers depicting famous people they admire on their windshields (Nelson Mandela and Bob Marley are two of the most common). Also, taxis in Ghana cost much less than in Toronto (even considering the exchange rate), in part because prices are negotiable. Supply and demand essentially dictates the price.
Often taxi drivers attempt to overcharge us because we are "obrunis" and less likely to bargain. After learning our lesson once or twice we quickly learned what is an appropriate price and the art of bargaining with a taxi driver. In contrast to the drivers that attempt to take advantage of our inexperience, some drivers offer us fair prices because, as they say, "The Lord will not reward those who cheat others." We have even had former taxi drivers recognize us around Town and give us a warm welcome. There's no doubt that we stand out from the crowds.
Taking a tro-tro can be a fascinating experience. Unlike taxis, no comparable mode of transportation exists in Canada. The average tro-tro fits approximately 15 people, or as many as the "mate" (think, driver's assistant) can fit and still slide the door closed. lnside a full tro-tro it's tight, hectic, and hot. The upside is that tro-tro rides are dirt cheap even over long distances (i.e., approximately $3 for a two hour trip).
The first step is finding the right tro-tro for your destination. There are few designated stops; typically, you just wait on the side of the road. As an obruni, once you find the right tro-tro you pay the mate and make sure that he knows where you are getting off. Locals typically hiss or make a comment when they are close to their destination but we haven't mastered that yet.
We have had some interesting experiences in tro-tros.
First, on a trip to nearby Cape Coast (about 2 hours from Takoradi), in a particularly warm and tight tro-tro the driver shoved an uncooperative baby goat into the back of the tro-tro at a particular stop. Unfortunately for us, we were seated in the back row. Emily could reach out and touch the goat. Our sympathy for the baby goat increased throughout the trip as it screamed out at each tro-tro stop. That said, our primary concern was that the goat was properly tied down.
Second, on a tro-tro journey from a place called Winneba where we attended Fred's wedding (more on that in another post) we were fortunate to quickly find a tro-tro that was heading to Takoradi (approximately three hours away). We noticed the driver begin to communicate with the driver of the tro-tro in front using hand gestures about one hour into the trip. We were unsure what was going on but impressed by the drivers' ability to communicate while driving 80 km/hr.
To our surprise, both tro-tros suddenly stopped and we were ushered out of our tro-tro and into the one in front. The drivers communicated in their tribal language, so we were unsure of what was happening but were willing to go with the flow. Eventually, the mate pointed to the other tro-tro and told us that it would take us to Takoradi. About an hour later we again were moved to another tro-tro. After 4 hours and 3 separate trotros we finally arrived back in Takoradi. After that adventure we decided that would be the final tro-tro excursion of our trip!
We learned that trotros don't like to compete for customers if they are on the same route. Instead, one tro-tro will take all of the passengers and while the other starts on a different route. We are consistently impressed by the creativity of businesspeople in all sectors in Ghana.
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