The Presidential Task team on the Restoration of Law and Order (PTT-RLO) at the Apapa Ports and access roads has said it has successfully handed over its activities to the Lagos State Government.
The former Executive Vice-Chairman of the PTT, Dr Kayode Opeifa, who made this known in a statement issued on Thursday, said the LASTMA, the Lagos State traffic management team, supported by the Lagos State Police Command would henceforth manage the Apapa traffic.
He said: “After weeks of careful planning, I am pleased to announce that the presidential task team charged with the responsibility of Restoration of Law and Order on Lagos roads leading to Apapa and around Lagos Port and Maritime Logistics Corridor has successfully handed over its activities to the LASG to be supported by the Lagos state Police Command.”
According to him, the decision to exit from Apapa, followed the relative normalcy on the axis with massive reduction in congestion and traffic, adding that a report on the activities of the Team, chaired by the Vice President Prof Yemi Osinbajo had erlier been presented to the presidency on October 7, 2020. Adding that the handing over process which started on November 8, 2020 was officially completed on Decemer 29, 2020.
According to him, the Team successfully delivered on all the five mandates given to it namely the restoration of law and order on all roads leading to the Lagos Ports and within the Lagos Port maritime logistic corridor, the removal of all stationary trucks on Lagos roads leading to the Ports and the development and deployment of an efficient and effective traffic management plan for the entire port area traffic (including the cargo, fuel distribution and business district traffic).
The other two mandates he added are; Development of a Traffic Management Direction or policy, which incorporates Port Operations, Incident rescue management, truck throughput and park management and special purpose Apapa Port Area Traffic Management with strict enforcement protocols.
He said the backed with strict enforcement, the system that the PTT developed has the capacity to clean up any congestion within two to six hours with the cooperation of major stakeholders and an effective incidence and recovery management system by LASTMA and LRU.
This he added is besides the development and deployment of a Manual Call Up system pending the introduction of an electronic system by the NPA. The system incorporated into the Traffic management plan envisaged trucks are called from Nominated Parks into Transit Parks (Lilypond and Tincan Island Transit Truck Parks) for call up into the Ports.
Working with NPA and the NSC developed and deployed a workable Empty Container Return Handling Policy to handle empty containers.
A reduction in the cost of Port Cargo Haulage from the Ports to different parts of the country and an Improved Port Cargo Trucks haulage throughput/turnaround time.
