Just wanted to get this in: I am NOT a fan of trotros. But unfortunately, due to Accra’s public transportation system, most commuters have no choice to use trotros to get to their destinations.
If you’re new to the city and need to use a trotro to get around town, there’s a steep learning curve that you’re going to have to climb. You will have to know the routes, how much money you need to pay, and a host of other things you may not be prepared for.
Thankfully, we have some brilliant young minds at Ashesi University who are trying to fix problems like efficiency with trotros.
Andrew Abbeyquaye, a senior at Ashesi, developed an interesting idea for his capstone project. Andrew used trotro data to develop and build a transit planning application to help users plan their itinerary for getting around Accra using trotros.
“I heard that the data was out and I’ve been quite interested in areas where transportation service in Ghana could be improved,” said Andrew. “However Google Maps doesn’t allow individuals to insert data into their transit system, so I had to build my own while still using their Maps API to visualize my results.”
“I was inspired by the potential that the outcome of the project would improve the way people travel in Accra,” explains Andrew. “I had other exciting ideas that would rely on next-gen technology however I realized that they would most likely serve only the 1% who could afford the technology.”
Building The Project
Using the trotro data, Andrew built a transit planning application to help users obtain a travel itinerary for their journeys within Accra while minimizing travel distance and time.
“I heard that the data was out and I’ve been quite interested in areas where transportation service in Ghana could be improved,” said Andrew. “However Google Maps doesn’t allow individuals to insert data into their transit system, so I had to build my own While still using their Maps API to visualize my results.”
It’s great to see young minds like Andrew using technology to help solve problems and make things more efficient especially with public transportation.
Hopefully, the dream of getting a fully funded application for trotro transportation will eventually be developed for the masses.
Source: Ashesi University
Quotes and Story Photo Credit: Ashesi University
