Abstract
This study investigated the relationship between highway professionals' attitudes toward sustainability criteria and their support for climate action in Ghana. Using structural equation modeling, two models were developed to examine bidirectional influences. The first model showed that economic factors and resource utilization significantly predicted climate action support. The second model revealed that climate action support positively influenced the perceived importance of all sustainability dimensions examined, including economic, environmental, technical, social, resource utilization, and project management aspects. The data were collected from 162 highway professionals in Ghana using a structured questionnaire. This study employed a two-step approach: confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) for the measurement model and path analysis (PA) for the structural model. The following six sustainability dimensions were considered: economics, environment, technical aspects, project implementation, social equity and culture, and resource utilization. The results highlight the complex interplay between sustainability priorities and climate action in highway infrastructure development. Economic considerations and resource management practices emerged as key drivers of climate action support, while support for climate action positively influenced attitudes toward all sustainability dimensions. Surprisingly, the environmental, technical, social, and project management dimensions did not significantly predict climate action support in the first model. These findings can inform policies to promote climate-resilient and sustainable highway practices in developing countries by leveraging synergies and addressing potential trade-offs between climate goals and other sustainability objectives. This study contributes to the broader discussion on integrating climate action with sustainable development goals in the context of transportation infrastructure. It also provides insights for regulatory and policy development in developing countries for highway infrastructure design, construction, and management.