Govt mulls logistics routes for trucks, articulated vehicles

The Lagos State government has said it is considering creating logistic routes for trucks and articulated vehicles as specified in the state transport master plan.

The Commissioner for Transportation Dr. Frederic Oladeinde, who revealed this at a stakeholders’ engagement, noted that to curb incessant truck accidents within the state, there was a need to chart robust strategies that will checkmate frequent truck accidents.

He stressed that a combination of different policies, which include erecting truck barriers, compliance with minimum safety standards, and restricting the movement of articulated vehicles to designated routes will go a long way in curbing truck accidents in Lagos.

Explaining the proposed logistic routes for trucks and articulated vehicles, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Transportation, Abdulhafiz Toriola noted that the state government is considering implementing the use of designated routes for articulated vehicles as one of the strategies to checkmate the operations and activities of trucks plying the state’s roads.

Emphasising that the safety and security of Lagosians remain paramount to the present administration, Toriola said that the state government does not want to take unilateral decisions, hence the need for the stakeholders’ engagement with relevant unions before taking necessary steps.

The Permanent Secretary disclosed that the ministry is reviewing the minimum safety standard procedure for trucks and articulated vehicles being implemented by the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) with a view to modifying it by including the Vehicle Inspection Service (VIS) and Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) officials in the inspection process.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Sola Giwa, said that the stakeholders’ meeting was very germane because of the precious lives that were being lost daily due to negligence on the part of drivers and truck owners, saying as a responsive and proactive government, it will no longer condone unabated truck accidents resulting in the killing of innocent citizens.

A representative of the Council of Maritime Transport Union and Association, (COMTUA), Adeyinka Aroyewun, called for genuineness and clarity of purpose by both parties in achieving the desired results.

Also, Chief Remi Ogungbemi of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), urged the state government to checkmate the activities of touts better known as area boys’ who have become a threat to the lives of its members.