I was in Konongo to buy steel, when I stopped by the old railroad depot to take some measurements for a little side project of mine. I was quite surprised to see the booth at the station occupied by a fellow in uniform. I asked him how long since the train had come, and he argued with a woman who was herding some goats on the track, and they decided it had been four and some years.

"What is your job here?" I asked.

"Mostly sanitation. I keep the weeds clear. They never let me rest."

The track runs 160-some miles from Accra to Kumasi, built by the British to haul mining equipment. Ghana Railways runs two trains, one south from Kumasi about 30 miles to a place 15 miles from here. The other runs up from Accra as far as it can, too. They are dripping commuters in National-Geographic-esque-third-world style.

But weak beds that can't support freight train weight prevent the circuit from being completed. Shoring up the bed or running new track is expensive. I noticed that rail ties are a coveted building material, so the employees probably keep an eye on the track.

There was a broke-down old treadle cart next to the booth. He said they used to use it to repair the tracks. There's a whole yard of them up in Kumasi at the company HQ, he said, but they're all broken and they won't give them new parts.

I find it extremely interesting that the company has kept its employees even after five years of no service. They obviously view this track as an investment to be guarded, which means they also are aware of the potential income it is wasting each day. Something really struck me about that guy, putting on his uniform each day for
five years and sitting in that booth, waiting for a train that never comes.