Stakeholders lament bad condition of roads
…Over 87 per cent roads expired — Expert
…We’ve established 57 ambulance service centres for road crashes — FRSC
By Seun Ibiyemi
Nigerian stakeholders have lamented over the poor state of roads across the country as it remains a major cause of accidents.
This is even as they lamented that over delay in Transport policy.
Speaking on a paper presented during the ongoing Chartered Institute of Transport Administration of Nigeria (CIoTA) in Abuja, a transport expert from School of Transport and Logistics, Lagos state University, Dr. Taiwo Salaam lamented that over 87 per cent of Nigeria roads are expired.
He also said that there should be synergy between the road management, Ministry of Works, Ministry of Transportation and others to make sure our roads are safe for users.
Dr. Kayode Opeifa, Secretary of Transportation in Federal Capital Territory Administration and a former Lagos Commissioner of Transport also explained the cause of heavy duty vehicles falling off the popular Ojuelegba Bridge in Lagos.
Contrary to widespread belief that some of the accidents were caused by break failure, he said the curvy nature of the bridge is responsible. He said this at the fourth National Summit on Transportation organised by the Chartered Institute of Transport Administration (CIoTA).
According to him, it becomes difficult for fully loaded vehicles ascending the bridge to accelerate and bend at the same time without losing balance because of the bent nature of the bridge.
He said research and field studies carried out by University or Lagos (UNILAG), Lagos State University (LASU) and other experts have uncovered the defect in the bridge construction which has led to many deaths and destruction of goods in transit.
Opeifa advocated a stronger synergy between the Ministry of Triansportation, Ministry of Works and the Federal Road Safety Corp(FRSC) to jointly implement government policies in harmony for effective outcomes.
The former Commissioner called for a reduction of some functions being handled by FRSC like processing and issuance of drivers licences which hitherto was being handled by state and local governments.
Also, Acting Corp Marshal of the FRSC, Dauda during a presentation at the 2022 Summit organised by the Chartered Institute of Transport Administration Abuja, said a total of 57 Ambulance Service Centres have been established by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to address post crash rescue needs across the country.
Biu who was represented by Jonas Agwu, Assistant Corp Marshal for Command and Strategy at the FRSC Headquarters said government alone cannot bear the burden of ensuring road safety because of funds needed to achieve efficient crash management.
Biu explained that the Ambulance Service Scheme, also called Zebra Centres, is in line with United Nations requirement.
According to him, the centres which increased from its initial 4 to 57 provide basic life support ambulances together with teams of medical personnel of the Corps.
The Corps Marshal described distracted driving as a major concern and other forms of non compliance.
He added that speed limiting device which will prevent vehicles from running above 100 kilometres per hour to achieve lesser impact in the event of crash will be helpful.
