Determinants of Vehicle Ownership in the Greater Tamale Area, Ghana

Abstract

Existing models of vehicle ownership in most developing countries, such as Ghana, are aggregate models which explain the factors that contribute to the rise in individual vehicle ownership. In fact, disaggregate models would be a better approach than aggregate models, but the latter is often adopted as a result of inadequate data on individual vehicle ownership. This study attempts to fill this gap by developing a disaggregate model to analyze the factors influencing the rise of private vehicle ownership (motorcycles and cars) in Ghana using the Greater Tamale Area (GTA) as the case study. We approach this by using recently collected data on a cross-section of workers within the city with average monthly incomes, distances to work, perceptions of the provision of non-motorized infrastructure, and sociodemographic factors as the explanatory variables. The findings show that a higher average monthly income, a greater traveling distance to work, a perception that the provision of non-motorized infrastructure is inadequate, increasing age, being married, and being male correlate with a higher likelihood of owning a car or a motorcycle, while living within 2 km of the Central Business District (CBD) correlates with a lower likelihood of car ownership but a higher likelihood of motorcycle ownership. The determination of these factors will help the government to develop policies that will improve mobility but reduce private vehicle dependency.