Designing foot bridges – Let’s adopt the Macao Example

As a fully-fledged member of the prestigious Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, Ghana, I was privileged to be part of the team that traveled to Macao, an independent administrative territory of the People’s Republic of China for the annual CILT International Convention in the year 2017.

Macao is a very unique piece of a territory that could boast of some of the leading global hotel resorts with its economy largely dependent on casino gaming or gambling and tourism including an array of varied imposing infrastructural development. Of course, a lot could be said of Macao but that is not my intention for putting up this write-up. I was overwhelmingly enthralled about the embellishment that greets a first-time visitor in respect of the prudent design and construction of the cities foot bridges.

Conspicuously, at the site of these foot bridges, one could acknowledge the fact that at both ends are fully mounted mechanically controlled escalated staircase which are kept in motion almost all day long. These mechanical escalators facilitate the movement of those with intention to traverse to the other side of the road with all the easiness it deserves. Moreover, the escalator adequately supports both the aged and the seemingly infirm pedestrians to boost their intended journey effortlessly.

Consequently, still probing for possible innovation in the context of road innovations, I yet again discovered that some of these ends of the foot bridges has actual mechanical lifts fitted alongside the electric powered escalators. In this connection, there is the choice as to which of the two to utilize to make one’s journey a bit safer, quicker and interesting.

Furthermore, at the top of the bridge is a mounted canopy on the entirety of the walkway and it is obvious that users are protected from the vagaries of the weather, at least, for the short period a pedestrian navigates the facility.

Now, coming back home in Ghana, these laudable innovations are absolutely misplaced considering the nature of our road designs. One thing we should not lose sight of is that such simple, not too costly project, if introduced into our road configuration could turn out to become the much desirable ‘cash cow’ the country is yearning for, because it could metamorphose into a modern tourist sites due to its uniqueness and congenial natural character that it would project for the state to take advantage of.

Incontrovertible and with the greatest conviction, I’m sounding the clarion call to the Ministry of Roads and Highways to consider re-configure existing foot bridges in the country based on the Macao example. This could among other things positively contribute to suppress the incessant road carnage bedeviling our cities specifically, in recent times, and other minor road incidents that could be avoided. Additionally, this would exude beautification to guarantee modernity to our cities and improve our socio-economic development.