The Nation Newspaper

Tag: traffic gridlock

  • Traffic gridlock: Lagos meets stakeholders today on enforcement

    Poised to reduce traffic gridlock across the state, the Lagos State Government will today meet with traders, commercial bus operators and others stakeholders.

    After the meeting, a seven-day abatement notice to traders, transporters and their unions in seven locations across the state, where traffic gridlock is due to trading and commercial transportation activities, will be issued.

    Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Transportation, Mr Olawale Musa said this at the sideline of a stakeholders meeting on traffic management.

    He represented Commissioner for Transportation, Frederic Abimbola Oladeinde at the event.

    Musa listed Ikorodu roundabout, Oyingbo, Yaba, Iyana-ipaja, Ketu, Ikotun and Ajah as the areas of major impediments.

    “In dealing with these identified locations, we will serve a seven-day abatement notice to all concerned locations effective after our meeting on Monday and thereafter prepare them (the stakeholders) for full enforcement of traffic laws and their attendant fines and penalties,” he said.

    Musa said the full force enforcement would commence at the expiration of the seven-day notice on October 18.

    According to him, 60 traffic gridlock locations have been identified by the state government.

    The state, he said, would not tolerate the disobedience of traffic law.

    He said the enforcement team would have its members drawn from road union members, traders across different locations, task force, Police, traffic management agencies and other stakeholders in the transport sector.

    He said: “The ultimate goal of the massive investments in transport sector by the state government has been geared toward ensuring free flow of traffic, road safety and socio-economic development.

    “Interestingly, in as much as all these plans and actions of the state government essentially indicate genuine concerns to address the perennial traffic problem in the state, it is important to admit that they have not been sufficient to entirely redress the situation.

    “In Lagos State, it is not uncommon to see vehicles illegally parked on either side of the road, some even drive in such a careless fashion that makes nonsense of traffic law  while others drive on or across the road medians, other human activities that complicate the traffic hassle in the state include; driving against traffic, making illegal U-turns, using reverse drive to cover long distance in order to beat traffic jam,  disobeying traffic lights and other traffic instructions, illegal trading activities  along our roads among others.

    “It is alarming to observe that many traders abandon their shops and display their goods on roads and drainage channels thereby compounding traffic situation in those locations.”

    Musa said the state government would soon implement the aspect of the traffic law which makes passengers a culprit in the violation of traffic law.

    He said that both the commercial bus driver and the passengers would be arrested and prosecuted if a bus drives against traffic.

    He said: “As a responsive government, it is not that we are not unaware of the fact that solving traffic problems in an emerging smart city like Lagos that houses two major ports, busiest international airports with concentration of largest numbers of oil tank farms is a herculean task but it is not insurmountable.

    “It is a task that will require the support, collaboration and cooperation of all the stakeholders by ensuring that you obey all traffic laws and regulations while you desist from any activity capable of undermining government efforts at improving the traffic situation; you must not drive on dedicated BRT corridors, you must not engage in one-way driving, you must respect and obey traffic lights, you must not display or sell goods on roads, medians and drainage channels.

    “As a government, we will remain committed to efficient traffic management and transportation system that will meet the need of the population of a fast growing smart city.”

  • Pupils develop app on traffic gridlock

    Four female pupils have developed a solution to address obstructive parking in the country.

    The innovative application (app), called Frostbits, will be useful in cities, such as Lagos, with its use of location sensors, database, and the app inventor’s interface and more.

    The four pupils from Princeton College, Surulere, Lagos under the tutelage of New Horizons Computer Learning Centres Limited, the school’s information communications technology (ICT) partner,  emerged African regional winner for this year’s Technovation contest held at Pan Atlantic University, Lekki, Lagos.

    The app came first in the ‘Senior Division Regional 2019 Technovation competition.  The app developers are Daniella Ekekwe (Grade 11);  Gbopemioluwa Olukoga (Grade 11);  Victory Yinka-Banjo (Grade 11); and  Tanyalouise Ekekwe (Grade 12).

    According to them, users can easily park their cars without worrying about interference from other drivers.

    Education Director, Princeton Schools, Dr Dolapo Bankole  said: ”Our emphasis in Princeton School is to produce pupils with 21st Century skills in sciences and technology, so that students from our school can compete effectively with their counterparts in Europe, America and Asia.”

  • Traffic gridlock: Will Executive Order do the magic?

    The first Executive Order of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration has shown how ‘desperate’ Lagos State is in getting not only the people moving, but also the state’s economy, writes Adeyinka Aderibigbe

    The Lagos State Tansport Management Authority’s (LASTMA’s) new slogan  in one of its advertisement against one way driving, seems to have struck a chord with Lagosians, who have in the last one week, begun to appreciate that “a new Sheriff is in town”.

    Nothing else underscores how central transportation is to the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration than the executive order, which came into force on May 30, barely 24 hours after he assumed office as the state’s fifth executive governor.

    For Lagos motorists, only very few unpleasant things could surpass traffic gridlock. Many could have opted to leave the state, but its economy is simply irresistible. So, rather than exiting, more people keep trooping in, compounding the economy and making nonsense of the state’s transportation plan.

    Successive governments had tried to resolve the traffic situation with massive road constructions and opening up of inner roads, but their efforts appeared like scratching the problem on the surface. Barely two weeks after being sworn in, the immediate past governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, showed the capacity to tackle the traffic situation when he visited some of the major grey points in the metropolis, assuring that his administration would provide solutions to the traffic snarl in the state.

    In a paper delivered at the African Forum of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transportation (CILT) at Arusha, Tanzania by the Assistant Corps Marshall of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Kayode Olagunju, titled: “Evaluating traffic congestion in developing nations, a case study of Nigeria”, major causes of congestion listed  by him included lane indiscipline, high traffic density, low road network carrying capacity and poor traffic management.

    Other causative factors, according to him, are poor road support infrastructure, such as lay-by, low response to removal of broken down and crashed vehicles and poor integration of urban transport planning.

    Sanwo-Olu’s Order, which could be interpreted as a declaration of a state of emergency on transportation, sought to address three thematic areas that have bedeviled the sector. They are road infrastructure, environmental impact and traffic management.

    Transportation holds the key to unlocking the nation’s economic potential. For so long, Lagos has been bedeviled by the transportation plague. The state, which hosts major drivers of the economy, the ports (both sea and air) and the nation’s financial headquarters, has been held back by a dreary transportation system that has relied almost exclusively on the roads.

    So grave has the impact of the gridlock to the nation’s economy been that the Lagos Bureau of Statistics said the state, whose population is estimated at 25.6 million, loses about two billion hours yearly. A moving transportation sector, therefore, remains the key to unlocking the economy. Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry President, Mr Babatunde Ruwase said recently that Nigeria loses between N5  and N7 trillion yearly to gridlock.

    Signing the Order, which came, Sanwo-Olu declared that Lagosians were in a hurry to see the enthronement of discipline on the roads. “The order was to address issues, such as potholes, blockages and the rest of it,” he said.

    To address these issues, he mandated the state’s Drain Ducks Agency, to clean all the drainage and de-silt all primary, secondary and tertiary drainages to ensure free flow of rainwater, especially during the rainy season and the blockade that usually results to ponding on the roads. He directed the Lagos State Public Works Corporation (LSPWC) to start road patching and rehabilitation.

    Sanwo-Olu by fiat, directed LASTMA to operate two shifts. “Our desire is to ensure that we control traffic until everybody gets home safely.  LASTMA should, therefore, extend its working hours and ensure traffic control till 11p.m,” he said.

    He instructed LASTMA and the Vehicle Inspection Service (VIS) to ensure compliance with traffic rules and regulations.

    He said: “Lagosians are not going to wait for us any longer to maintain orderliness on our roads. Hence, I have invited all the Security Chiefs to witness the signing of the Executive Order so that they can hear us and support us.’’

    It was the first time, according to Kayode Opeifa, any government in Lagos will back LASTMA’s activities with an Executive Order.

    “The order has put paid to thinking in certain quarters that the Sanwo-Olu government may be soft on traffic offenders. Right in front of security chiefs in the state, the governor gave LASTMA the marching order to strictly enforce all extant laws relating to transportation,” he said.

    Opeifa, a former Commissioner for Transportation in the state and immediate past Executive Secretary for Transportation in the Federal Capital Territory Authority (FCTA), said no agency of government has suffered more in the last four years than LASTMA, many of whose officials were attacked, maimed and killed by irate citizens just for doing their legitimate job of keeping traffic moving in the state.

    However, as the state seemed bent on traffic management, it understood that no success could be achieved if the roads remained bad. With virtually all its 9,600 inner road network in various stages of dilapidation, the governor recognised that nothing tangible could be done except the roads are fixed.

    Not only did he mandate the LSPWC to embark on aggressive remediation of all critical roads across the state, the governor, as part of efforts at ensuring that all roads are touched, promised to release emergency toll free telephone numbers through which Lagosians could report all bad roads in their areas.

    At a public forum, the governor directed the LSPWC to swing into action. LASTMA’s General Manager Olawale Musa said the agency is prepared to comply with the governor’s directive. Musa said the 4000-man strong agency may even run three shifts at some locations that are notable for traffic gridlock. He disclosed that efforts were in top gear to provide security backup for its men whose shift runs into the night.

    “Our men have been adequately briefed and they are very enthusiastic in cooperating with the administration in keeping the state moving. In some places we are planning to have working sheds where those who may not be able to return to their homes at night could repose for the night,” Musa said.

    Musa, however, sued for commuters’ understanding to reduce frictions that usually put his men at risk on the field.

    “We would urge Lagosians to understand that we are partners and not enemies. Our desire is to ensure that everyone moves freely in the state and we would continue to do this without fear or favour,” Musa said, adding that the agency was getting worried that some unscrupulous drivers (both commercial and private) were fond of abducting its officers, beating and abandoning them in desolate places.

    “Every week, we receive reports in our situation room of our officials being abducted by culprits in the course of enforcing traffic regulations, beaten mercilessly before being released or in some cases the officials escaping before more harm could come their way,” he said.

    He disclosed that the agency has been organising regular training and retraining of its workforce to drive down a re-orientation needed for better civil engagement to promote good relationship with motorists.

    Olawale added that the agency had tried to stop physical enforcement of traffic offences, but was being stalled because of lack of data. He, therefore, called for public understanding, saying that rather than taking the law into their hands, erring officials should be reported to the agency for appropriate disciplinary actions.

    “LASTMA is being paid from their taxes. The government employed these officials to work in their interest to keep the roads free, so they should cooperate with us. We are there for them to ensure that they have free flow of traffic. Whatever issues they have, they should take it up with us and not our officers on the road. If our officers misbehave let them take it up with us, we have machinery in place to take up any offences and mete out the appropriate punishment to any officer. Let them cooperate with LASTMA to ensure that our services are seamless,” he said.

    Sanwo-Olu, then, urged all agencies involved in the exercise to encourage voluntary compliance and enlightenment. “You are to enforce the law only when it is absolutely necessary and after you have exhausted all peaceful avenues,” the governor said.

    He indicated that the government would come up with a policy on driving against traffic, and other forms of lane indiscipline, which, according to Olagunju, is one of the major challenges against free flow traffic in the state.

  • Ports congestion, traffic gridlock, others cost Nigeria $19b yearly

    Nigeria is losing $19 billion yearly because of bribes, beatings, and gridlock at its ports, a report by Bloomberg has shown.

    According to the report, congestion outside and inefficiency within Nigeria’s ports is choking the economy. It also revealed that the congestion causes havoc for businesses that use them to import everything from cars to computers, food and machinery.

    The huge financial loss is about five per cent of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP). Traffic jams, illegal charges and insecurity that are increasingly prevalent at its ports, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) said in a report this year.

    In the World Bank’s Trading Across Borders survey, which measures the time and expense involved with importing and exporting goods, Nigeria ranks 182nd out of 190 countries, below Syria and Afghanistan. The report noted that out of 190 countries, the country is one of the toughest to trade in. The survey measures time and cost involved with importing or exporting goods, with the country where it’s the easiest at number one.

    The problems at Apapa and other ports such as Calabar and Port Harcourt have been a headache for successive administrations, which have failed to fix decaying infrastructure, reduce stifling red tape and tackle corruption.

    Terminal operators, including APM Terminals, a unit of Denmark’s AP Moller-Maersk A/S, rely on generators because power cuts are so frequent. But it’s worsened in recent years, especially at Apapa. Crumbling roads have all but ground trucks to a halt. Once they do manage to enter, drivers and businesses have to contend with a plethora of customs, immigration and security agents before they can pick up containers. It could take 20 days to clear products, compared with 48 hours in neighboring Benin and Ghana, according to the LCCI. The cost of moving a container from Apapa to other parts of Lagos has soared to as much as N700,000 ($1,930) from about N150,000 two years ago as trucking firms jerk up their prices to make up for the delays, according to the Nigerian Shippers’ Council.

    “We have to pay the area boys and the police also want money. We can pay N80,000  in bribes per trip. If you don’t, it can take weeks to get in. Sometimes they will beat you if you don’t give them money,” said David, a 40-year-old driver who’s been traveling to Apapa for almost 20 years.

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo visited Apapa in May 2017, and directed officials to start working around the clock and all agencies to locate their operations in one place to ease delays, but it’s been to no avail. Many people prefer to use more efficient ports in Benin, Ghana and Togo, according to Mike Onulide, who runs a business exporting food including noodles and garri, a cassava-based staple popular in West Africa. “You don’t face the same kinds of frustration there that you do in Nigeria,” he said, recalling how a fellow businessman still hasn’t received compensation after one of his containers was dropped into the sea early this year. That can’t come soon enough for the weary drivers who bear the brunt of the chaos. “I haven’t had a bath in over a week,” said Akinola Kabiru, waiting to get into Apapa and who says he may have to pay N75,000 in bribes to keep his place in the queue. “I pee under the truck. I sleep under the truck. If my boss sends the money, may be I can enter,” he lamented.

  • Lekki residents to tackle traffic gridlock

    •Exco members take oath of office

    Stakeholders of the Lekki Peninsula Phase I Residents Association have concluded plans to tackle increasing traffic challenges.

    The group aims to, among other plans, liaise with the Lagos State Government to remove the Admiralty Way Roundabout and replace it with a traffic light system.

    They also highlighted transportation and environment as key areas in need of attention.

    The group spoke at the inauguration of new executive that will pilot the affairs of the community in the next two years.

    Chief Anthony Idigbe (SAN) administered the oath of office on Sir Kayode Otitoju, who was elected as Chairman, Chika Allison – Vice Chairman, Funmi Adeogun – Secretary and Oliver Obi – Treasurer.

    Otitoju declared that the administration would strive to return the dignity of the Lekki people in light of recent efforts to commercialise the community.

    He said commercial workers, who dominate the community have thwarted the exclusive image the community was striving to build with the inflow of hawkers, cart pushers, petty traders, commercial bike riders

    Otitoju therefore said he would work to restore the image while evaluating the state of implementation of the ongoing Lekki peninsula ilium and the shoreline protection projects with a view to solving environmental problems and challenges.

    The administration, he said, also plans to do constant clearing and cleaning of medians and setbacks on the main and arterial roads while prohibiting illegal dumping of refuse and solid waste on roads, zonal streets and neighbourhood.

  • Residents blame Pen Cinema flyover for traffic gridlock

    Residents blame Pen Cinema flyover for traffic gridlock

    SOME residents yesterday called on the Lagos State Government to adopt measures to reduce hardship on the road in the face of the ongoing road work in parts of the metropolis.

    This, they said, had become imperative following the resumption of schools after the Yuletide break.

    A News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondent, who went round, reports that commuters were stranded at bus-stops as buses were held up in traffic.

    An engineer, Dayo Ogunware, who lives in Shasha, said the inner roads were blocked because of the pressure on the highway caused by the ongoing construction of the Pen Cinema flyover in Agege.

    Ogunware said the Agege axis served as alternative routes to vehicles from Sango Ota and environs.

    He appealed to the government to ensure the quick completion of the project to reduce road users’ hardship.

    “It was difficult to get buses this morning (yesterday). Traffic diversion from Agege Pen Cinema inward Agege Motor Road toward  Abeokuta Expressway as a result of the  flyover project is the cause of this problem.

    “The state government ought to have completed the ongoing Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lane construction project on Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway before embarking on the construction of the Pen Cinema flyover.

    “The completion of the BRT lane would have contained the traffic diversion from Pen Cinema,” he said.

    A civil servant, Mrs Tade Olukoya, told NAN that she spent hours on the road because of the gridlock. She  blamed the government for poor planning.

    “We know government is working for our good but they should consider the stress we go through and plan better.

    “They should create alternatives for us, the whole of this area is locked down because government wants to construct many roads at the same time,” she said.

    But a businessman,  Tomi Olarenwaju, said the hardship was the price to pay for development.

    “The BRT lane when completed would eliminate traffic on this expressway,  same for the flyover in Agege, I think we need to be a bit patient,” he told NAN.

    A school teacher, Mrs Herrieta Uzorigwe, blamed the gridlock on resumption of workers from the holiday and first day of resumption for schools.

  • Stop causing traffic gridlock, Lagos warns fuel stations

    Stop causing traffic gridlock, Lagos warns fuel stations

    The Lagos State Ministry of Transportation  yesterday implored filling stations to ensure that they did not disturb traffic with fuel queues.

    The ministry gave the charge just as the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN) Lagos State chapter urged the Federal Government to end fuel scarcity.

    According to the ministry,  filling stations should ensure that vehicle queues  did not obstruct traffic.

    The ministry said the disruption of traffic by fuel buyers was affecting the economic activities of individuals and corporate bodies.

    The ministry advised the buyers to be orderly and urged marketers not to create artificial scarcity.

    It also asked the marketers to ensure that customers did not disturb traffic in order  to avoid  sanction, which may include being shut down.

    The ministry has constituted a committee to monitor  traffic to prevent the loss of man-hour and travel time.

    The scarcity, according to MSSN President, Dr. Saheed Ashafa, is eating into the pockets of students.

    Their sufferings, he said, were unbearable.

    He spoke at a briefing on the forthcoming 104th Islamic Vacation Course (IVC), a camping programme holding between Saturday and January 1 at Human Capital Development Centre, Epe, Lagos.

    Ashafa said: “Prices of goods and transports have skyrocketed within the last few days. We urge the government to utilise the numerous resources in the country to secure a decent life for the citizenry. The government needs to remain focused and avoid distractions. We are tired of efforts and predictions; we want accomplishments. We want to start having the real feeling of development.

    “We are fed up with ‘white paper’ development without a corresponding comfort in both the standard and cost of living.”

    He lamented the deplorable state of education in the country urging “President Muhammadu Buhari to nip in the bud finally the seemingly intractable industrial actions in the education sector. A way to do that is ensuring adequate funding of the sector at all levels, and close monitoring of how allocated funds are utilised.

    “It is our belief that if enough fund is injected into the sector and closely monitored, it will improve the standard and quality of education, and by extension the quality of Nigerian graduates.

    “We condemn in totality the plan of some governors to stop paying West African Examination Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council (NECO) fees for students. Most of these governors have their children  institutions and they never cared not to splash the pictures of their graduating sons and daughters on our faces with brazen impunity! So, if paying for the WAEC and NECO fees of the poor masses is the only legacy they want to leave in the education sector, they should let it be for God’s sake!”

     

  • Traffic gridlock: Shifting focus to non-motorised option

    Despite its huge number  of pedestrians,  Lagos roads have remained almost exclusively motorised. But this may soon be over, as the government has unveiled a non-motorised transportation policy. writes ADEYINKA ADERIBIGBE

    How can Lagos roads be more responsive to the needs of all segments of its  population? This is  the puzzle the government is set to resolve.

    Over the last 17 years, easing travel experience has been behind the government’s road reforms. The reforms have widened most of the roads, and ensured they are motorable. More inner roads have been constructed. But, until recently, the roads have been exclusively motorised, making it unsafe for other classes of users.

    The government plans to evolve a policy to share the road with other segments. Will Lagosians feel safe walking, or riding a bicycle on the congested  roads?

    Though nine million of its 25 million population use public transportation daily, Lagos has more residents walking. That’s why the government’s attention has shifted to making all modes of transportation work.

    At a stakeholders’ forum by the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (LAMATA), last week, the government unveiled plans for a policy to promote safe Non-Motorised Transportation (NMT), the fourth mode of transportation.

    Helping LAMATA to develop the initiative is the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

     

    Why NMT

     

    Lagos is not the only state UNEP has helped to design an all-inclusive NMT masterplan. In 2011, it did same for Nairobi, Kenya’s capital and most populous city.

    Non-Motorised Transport, which involves walking and bicycle riding, has gained wide acceptance for its affordability. It is also environmentally safe, even if unpleasant and a dangerous mode of transportation.

    In a paper, The significance of non-motorised transport for developing countries: Strategies for policy development,” by Maurits Servaas, Project Leader for Interface for Cycling Expertise (I-CE), a Netherlands association, though NMT is associated with poverty, walking has become an important mode in an integrated transport system.

    Walking, he said, is beginning to play an increasing role, albeit usually as a convenient and non-polluting mode in multi-modal systems, for a number of high-income industrialised countries such as Netherlands.

    The case for Africa, in the report published in 2000, showed that while in Nairobi and Dar-es Salaam nearly half of trips are entirely made on foot, the remaining share of the travel is made on public transport.

    While walking is associated with poverty, the functions of bicycles differ widely between Africa and Asia. While in Africa, bicycle serves as a means of transport for goods and people, in Asia and Americas, cycling is essentially for recreation.

    His works were done in collaboration with the World Bank, which is concerned with ensuring the proper utilisation of the potential of non-motorised transport.

    In an online paper, Share the road: Prioritising non-motorised transport in developing countries, Sheila Watson, deputy director of Environment and Research at the FIA Foundation, a UK-based charity committed to promoting safe and sustainable mobility across the world, suggested a fully-integrative multi-modal transport system that must incorporate non-motorised transport. She said NMT appeared most suitable for short distance, while public transport or cars are suitable for long distance as it offers greater comfort and efficiency.

    According to Watson, the most- desirable and efficient modal mix depends on several factors, such as the pattern of land use, prices, travel needs, existing transport vehicles and infrastructure, among others.

    She canvassed that transport architecture must be planned around the people because they are the heartbeat of every city, adding that cycling has significant health and environmental benefits, and helps to reduce pollution and promote physical fitness.

    Unlike motorised road users, experts said pedestrians and cyclists are vulnerable.

    That’s why Watson insists on sharing the road. “There are strong indications” she said, “for the design of separate spaces for non-motorised transport. These spaces, in turn, must form part of an integrated mobility system that connects the users to mass transit options.”

    Studies showed that a uni-modal system such as that of a state like Lagos, often leads to sub-optimal situation, with too many private cars or even too many bicycles leading to congestion and a reduction in average speed, compared to multi-modal systems.

     

    Healthy

     

    The FIA Foundation which works with the UNEP, to help cities in developing countries to prioritise walking and cycling, said what kills NMT in most urbanised cities across the world is the vulnerability of the people.

    Though NMT has significant health and environmental benefits, yet in many cities across the world, pedestrian facilities have been poor and people aren’t safe crossing the roads, says the foundation.

    On the average, 80 percent of journeys in some African cities are made on foot. Watson said about 27 percent of the 1.3 million people who die on the road each year are pedestrians and cyclists.

    An assessment by International Roads Assessment Programme (iRAP) in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, also found that 95 percent of roads assessed had high pedestrian flows, yet only 20 percent had pedestrian footpaths.

    The Nairobi City County Government had developed a NMT Policy, which was launched in March, 2015, after identifying that 70 percent of the 723 road traffic fatalities in Nairobi in 2014 were pedestrians.

    The policy proposed a range of measures including lower road speeds, new infrastructure and traffic calming measures, as well as awareness raising activity, enforcement and financial commitments.

    The highlight of this policy is to ‘’create a system focused on people rather than vehicles.’’

    Another country which has introduced such policy is Mexico City, which introduced a Mobility Law in 2014.  The law introduced a mobility hierarchy, with pedestrians at the top, followed by cyclists and then mass public transit, with private motorised vehicles last.

    Nairobi’s NMT policy commits 20 percent of existing and future transport budget to walking, cycling and public transport infrastructure and services.

    However, other cities go further. Chennai in India has recently allocated 60 percent of the transport budget to constructing and maintaining NMT infrastructure. This is in line with its ambitious goals to achieve continuous footpaths on at least 80 percent of all streets.

    LAMATA’s ambition is to bring Lagos at par with this development, with a policy that aims at supporting walking and cycling.

    Just 10 percen of countries in Africa has policies to promote walking and cycling, against 64 percent in Europe. In Kenya, Share the Road’s work, with the Kenyan Urban Roads Authority, led to a policy change in 2011 which has integrated walking and cycling facilities on new urban road projects.

    Though the details of the NMT policy is still under wraps, LAMATA has left no one in doubt that it will incorporate walking and cycling into its new road projects.

    Opening the reconstructed Wempco Road, a few years back,  former Governor Babatunde Fashola indicated  that new roads would incorporate a bicycle lane and walk way.

    LAMATA said NMT remained one of the ways to make the roads more effective.

    At the event, the Special Assistant to the Governor on Transportation, Prince Anofiu Elegushi, said non-motorised transportation would contribute significantly to the state’s integrated multimodal public transportation system.

    He said: “Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has already taken the bold initiative to ensure the incorporation of cycling and pedestrian infrastructure in the development of roads in the state.

    “The provision of segregated traffic facilities such as bus stop laybys, walkways, footbridges, underpasses, zebra crossings and traffic system management signs at various high density locations in Lagos are to promote the safety of pedestrians. This, according to him, would be complemented by the provision of pathways for bicycles riders”, Elegushi added.

    He said the draft policy which would soon be passed into law by the state’s House of Assembly would empower the government and other stakeholders to access the huge benefits of a reduction in carbon emission and Green House Gasses (GHG) from motorised vehicles.

    LAMATA’s Managing Director Abiodun Dabiri said NMT was one of the main policy options and part of the institutional reforms that the state must implement to address traffic congestion and environmental pollution while ensuring public road safety.

    He said LAMATA’s conceived plan was within the framework of the Strategic Transport Master plan (STMP).

    Dabiri said the draft policy on NMT would aid the development of key infrastructure that would facilitate pedestrian movements and community integration within and across neighbourhoods in the megacity to complement the development of a true multi-modal transport system.

    The policy when passed into law, he said, will involve three levels — community integration through the creation of a continuous pedestrian network, connection of pedestrian network with main public transport corridors and accessibility to the main transportation hubs and interchanges of the city with significant passenger demand.

    He praised the ITDP and UNEP for their technical and financial support towards the provision of the draft policy, which was adopted by stakeholders at the conference.

    Dr. Taiwo Salaam, director of Transport Policy, Ministry of Transportation praised LAMATA and other stakeholders for their contribution towards the development of the draft policy.

    Salaam said NMT occupied a central place in the intermodal transport system of the state, adding that when it fully comes on stream, all roads would have walk and bicycle paths.

    “We are determined in Lagos State to begin to build roads that will cater to the needs of all classes of users. This will reduce traffic congestion and make the road safer for all,” Salaam said.

     

  • Stakeholders proffer solution to Apapa traffic gridlock

    To ameliorate the perennial traffic congestion within Apapa and environs, stakeholders have agreed to erect  truck barriers  at the entrance and exit of identified inner roads within Apapa.

    It was also agreed that for ease of doing business, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) must be operational 24 hours within the port premises, regardless of public holidays.

    These were some of the decisions reached at the stakeholder’s forum on Apapa traffic gridlock held at the Apapa Local Government Secretariat.

    According to the communiqué issued at the end of the forum, government agencies were advised to involve stakeholders through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for  collaboration to commence immediate palliative repairs of the access roads,  especially that of Coconut and Tin-can port roads

    In addition, the restriction movement of the trucks outside Lagos State will be closely monitored and enforced by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Law Enforcement Committee and other security agencies.

    The stakeholders also agreed that henceforth, only consolidated shipping companies would be allowed to bring empty containers from the holding bays into the port while the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA), Shippers’ Council and NIMASA being the regulatory bodies are to enforce the use of holding bays as a pre-requisite for shipping companies.

    The stakeholders agreed that all shipping companies are to comply with the resolution within seven days; as defaulters will be sanctioned.

    The long years of perennial traffic congestion within Apapa port and its environs had greatly affected socio-economic activities in the area.

    Members of stakeholders also went round for an on the spot assessment of the facilities of the terminal operators and evaluate the condition of the access roads into the port.

    The stakeholders include representatives of Lagos State government, NPA, Shippers’ council, terminal operators, police force, Lagos State Emergency Management Authority (LASEMA), FRSC, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), and National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) among others.

  • Traffic gridlock: Ogun directs Julius Berger to work at night

    Traffic gridlock: Ogun directs Julius Berger to work at night

    The Ogun State government has expressed deep concern about the hardship being faced by Nigerians who regularly commute on the ever-busy Lagos-Ibadan expressway on account of the ongoing reconstruction work being undertaken by Julius Berger Plc.

    It has accordingly directed that with effect from Monday, August 8, 2016, the contractor shall not work on the Lagos Ibadan expressway during the peak traffic hours, namely from 6am to 10am and between 4pm and 10pm. We encourage the contractor to work full blast between 10am and 4pm and also during the night after 10pm.

    This measure has become necessary because we observed that the already bad traffic situation on the expressway has been further compounded by the increasing spate of armed robberies reported along the road.

    The Ogun State government welcomes the ongoing reconstruction works in the full realization of the fact that this will ultimately bring greater relief to our people. We however note that the effort has come with temporary pain, in the nature of perennial traffic congestion and security challenges.

    In the past few weeks, we took two steps. We increased police and security patrols on that axis and opened up discussions with the Federal Controller of Works, Ogun State and the contractor. We suggested that they should consider working late evenings and overnight in order to ameliorate the disruption to the lives of commuters on the ever-busy expressway and Ogun residents. It is a thing of regret that our suggestion was spurned.

    The state government made this request based on experience. We recall that before the advent of the Senator Ibikunle Amosun administration, armed robberies occasioned by bad portions of the road; traffic congestion caused by unruly drivers driving against the flow of traffic and tanker drivers parking indiscriminately on the median, were the order of the day.