The Nation Newspaper

Tag: pedestrian

  • Manslaughter: Truck driver, gets N500,000 bail

    A 41-year-old truck driver, Garuba Adamu, who allegedly drove his vehicle recklessly and knocked down a pedestrian, Olubukola Ajayi, was on Tuesday released on N500,000 bail on the orders of an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court.

    The Magistrate, Mrs Y.R. Pinheiro, who gave the ruling, also granted the accused two sureties in like sum, one  of who must be a landed property owner in the state.

    Adamu, whose address is unknown, had pleaded not guilty to a three-count charge of dangerous driving, driving without licence and manslaughter.

    Earlier, the prosecutor, Insp. Mathew Akhaluode, told the court that the accused drove recklessly and knocked down Ajayi, who was walking along the road.

    He said Adamu, who drove a truck with registration no. KSF 821 XM, committed the offences at about 7.00 a.m. on Feb. 7 along Ekoro Road, Abule Egba,  a Lagos suburb.

    The accused was alleged to have also damage a tricycle belonging to Abdulkarim Yahaya.

    “A team of traffic management officials rushed to the scene and took the lifeless body of the victim to the hospital.”

    The offences contravened Sections 19, 20 and 28 of the Road Traffic Law of Lagos State, 2011.

    The magistrate adjourned the case to March 20 for mention.

  • Expert to Lagosians: use pedestrian bridges

    The Director of Operation, DMS Security, Mr Emmanuel Onyekeh, has appealed to commuters in Lagos to always use the pedestrian bridges provided by the government to avoid being knocked down by vehicles.

    Speaking at the inauguration of “Operation use the bridge campaign” under the pedestrian bridge at Onipanu, at the weekend, Onyekeh said many lives have been lost in recent times, especially on the Ikorodu Road dual carriageway.

    According to him, besides the fact that climbing the bridges across the highway would save lives, “it is also a way of exercising the body”.

    He said the government was aware of the challenges being faced by in climbing the bridge from Eleyedeye and Onipanu, hoping that something will be done to address the problem.

    One of the residents in the area, Atere Abiola, expressed joy over introduction of the Operation use the bridge campaign, which he said would help reduce death on the highway.

    But a commuter, Chinedu Ugochuwkwu, described climbing the bridge as a waste of time.

    “I have to walk a distance from Eleyedeye to climb the bridge. The truth is that if there was no barricade, I would prefer running across the road,” he said.

    He also expressed concern about old people and the physically challenged that go through hell climbing the stairs as the bridge was not constructed to accommodate the aged and those with physical disabilities.

  • 109 pedestrians arrested for ‘crossing highway’

    109 pedestrians arrested for ‘crossing highway’

    No fewer than 109 pedestrians were at the weekend arrested across different parts of Lagos for allegedly crossing the highway.

    Their arrests came after series of warnings from the state government for people to stop crossing the highway in areas where pedestrian bridges are available.

    A combined team of Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Task Force on Environmental Sanitation and Kick Against Indiscipline officials combed the state on Friday and Saturday, nabbing 102 males and seven females for crossing the express.

    ‎It was learnt that the spate of accidents and the accompanying increase in loss of lives , as well as the resurgence of traffic robbers necessitated the operation.

    ‎Hence in line with Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s policy to instill discipline in the people, it was gathered that the Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni directed the RRS and task force to embark on a special mission to let people know it was a traffic offence to not use the bridges were available.

    “This operation is a continuous one. We are saddled with the responsibility to instill discipline into erring individuals to prevent loss of lives and properties.

    “This is why we can’t fold our arms seeing many lives being lost for not using the bridges. The state Government wants a safer Lagos and people’s refusal to use the bridges also hinder free flow of traffic on the highways.

    “This act of indiscipline will not be allowed in Lagos State any longer. If traffic is allowed to flow freely, the menace of in-traffic robbery cases will become a thing of the past,” said a police source.

  • Pedestrian punished for not using bridge

    Pedestrian punished for not using bridge

    For not using the overhead bridge at Ikeja along bus stop on Lagos-Agege Motor Road, some pedestrians were yesterday given corporal punishment.

    They were ordered to crawl on their knees by a Man ‘o’ War official.

    The Nation observed that one woman in native attire and two men served the punishment, crawling halfway down the pedestrian walkway by the bridge.

    The bridge was unusually busy as many used it to avoid the fate of the erring pedestrians. Some watched the scene below from the bridge.

    A commercial driver said a pedestrian was killed on Monday while crossing the road.

    “Why dem go dey cross the road? There is bridge. Car hit somebody yesterday when crossing the road. That is why they are punishing them,” he said.

    However, less than 50 metres away, at the nearby National bus stop, commuters crossed unchallenged from the Computer Village side to Conoil petrol station and vice versa. After Ikeja Along, there is no other pedestrian bridge until Oshodi.

     

  • Pedestrian bridges and security

    Pedestrian bridges and security

    I give kudos to the Lagos State government and other stakeholders for promoting pedestrian safety well ahead of this year’s declaration of “safe walking” (pedestrian safety) by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

    Without doubt, a lot of lives have been lost due to the non-use of pedestrian bridges or its absence.

    I also use this forum to commend the state government and other governments for constructing more pedestrian bridges to ensure the safety of human lives. There is, however, a serious issue I want to mention here for the attention of the state government and other government concerned.

    To generate income, the state government, through her agencies, has sealed up all the sides of the pedestrian bridges thereby making it difficult to see the people walking on the bridges. This situation has been capitalised upon by hoodlums to attack law-abiding citizens that are using the bridges. The security personnel on the bridges are not always on duty 24/7, they are not armed and there is little or nothing they can do to assist the pedestrian being attacked.

    My candid advice is that the governments should not allow the construction or attachment of any object or advert on any part of the pedestrian bridges. This will make all the pedestrians walking on the bridges visible to everyone in the environment. Whenever there is any suspicious movements or activities on the pedestrian bridges, the people down can make distress call to the police or even go up to rescue the victims.

    In addition, the government must provide good lighting system on the pedestrian bridges to make it safe for pedestrians in the night.

    With the two issues mentioned above, properly addressed, pedestrians will be gladly and safely use the pedestrian bridges during the day and night. Beggars, traders, loitering, and waiting should not be allowed on the pedestrian bridges.

    Lastly, I want to mention here that there should be an additional construction attached to every pedestrian bridge for the physically challenged just like the one at Five Star bustop on Apapa Oshodi expressway.

    If the government wants people to obey the laws by using the pedestrian bridges, the same government must take extra steps to guarantee the safety and security of the pedestrians on the bridges. I want to add here that governments and their agencies should always have a feedback mechanism to enhance their success in policy formulation and implementation. For example, to know the effectiveness of the European “Certificate of Professional Competence”, a questionnaire was designed and widely circulated to know “how effective it is, its contribution to road safety, what specific actions and measures could improve it’s effectiveness and the initial qualification and periodic training”. The results from such questionnaires will go a long way in guiding the actions of governments. Please let us take a cue from this strategy in Nigeria for better performance and accountability

     

  • For traders, pedestrian bridges are means of livelihood

    Pedestrian bridges are built on some major highways to make crossing the roads easy and save lives. They are solely used by pedestrians but not so for the one at Ojuwoye Market, Mushin Lagos. Traders have converted this particular bridge to a market place.

    The bridge has been abandoned for five years. Traders and buyers cashed in on this to transact their business.

    Mrs. Bunmi Enitan, a road side seller in the market, said traders were forced to sell at the entrance of the bridge because it was abandoned.

    “The bridge has really helped us as a means of living because we get the attention of our customers. Immediately, they cross the road they come to our side and this has really boosted our sales,’’ she said.

    Another trader, Mrs. Ganiyat Ogunlana, said though they have been selling on the bridge for long, it has not stopped law enforcement agencies from disturbing them, especially the Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI). Whenever they try to chase us away, we run in order for them not to seize our goods.

    ‘’Most of us depend on this place to sell our goods because that’s the only means to feed our children and send them to school,’’ he said.

    A shopper at the market, Mrs Chinenye Asukwo, said the pedestrian bridge is useless since Mushin road is not an expressway, adding that it is easy to cross.

    ‘’Places such as Ijaiye and Abule Egba are where we need a pedestrian bridge not this place,“ she said.

    But Mr. Johnson Olaleye said crossing the busy Mushin Road without using the bridge is risky. He called on the security agencies to arrest and prosecute not only offenders, but also those selling beside the bridge.

    He called on the Lagos State Government to enlighten residents on the importance of pedestrian bridges and the hazards of crossing the expressway without using the them.

    Mrs Kemi Ojo said the traders were not at fault, that they only used the opportunity they had to earn a living.

    ‘”I think the government should reconstruct the bridge. Governor Babatunde Fashola has been building pedestrian bridges and this is important in this area,” he added.