By Yinka Aderibigbe
The Lagos State government took its drive for safer roads and safer road users higher on Tuesday, when it declared its roads illegal for all commercial bus operators who are not certified by the State’s Drivers Institute, (LASDRI).
The Commissioner for Transportation Mr Ladi Lawanson gave the directive on Tuesday, at a one day workshop organised for drivers by the State’s Ministry of Transportation in conjunction with the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Alausa, Ikeja.
He said the workshop, with the theme; promoting road safety in a smart city through continuous driver education, is another stride towards making the state a liveable smart city.
According to him, the state, since 2007, have established LASDRI to train and retrain all categories of drivers, especially commercial a.d professional drivers in order to promote safety of lives and property of commuting public.
He said: “Our concern for safe highway and roads was borne out of the United Nations Decade of Action, which targeted a significant reduction in deaths and injuries arising from road traffic crashes by year 2020.”
He therefore praised the LCCI for partnering with the state government in ensuring that drivers plying our various roads operate optimally and saw road safety as a shared responsibility.
The workshop, he further stated, is another strategic step towards the achievement of the goals of the UN decade of action, which recommends among others, aggressive enlightenment, training and retraining of all categories of all road users towards promoting safer roads for all.
” We have not only keyed into the give pillars of the UN recommendations, we have surpassed them. It is on record that Lagos is yge only state that has a radio station, Lagos Traffic Radio, dedicated yo the monitorinv of traffic in all parts of the state, and our vehicle Inspection Service (VIS), carry out twice a year road safety csmpaigns in all motor parks and garages in order to promote new driving culture.”
He said LASDRI, furnished with modern equipment for eye testing, computerised driving simulators, biometric data capture among others is poised at eliminating manual testing to ensure safer drivers on the roads.
LCCI President Mr Babatunde Paul Ruwase, said the association teamed up with the government because it realised that a trained driver is key to safer roads and is a major factor to reduction of crashes o the roads.
Ruwase, ho was represented by his deputy Engr Mrs Johanna Olu Maduka, said since transportation studies have established a link between the attitude of drivers and the accidents, efforts must be doubled to ensure that those behind the wheels received adequate trainings and are certified to be vehicle operators.
He said Lagos city transportation to become fit for smart city status, needs to be driven by science and technology.
“LCCI believes reckless driving, driving against traffic, overloading, and traffic congestion are created by unskilled drivers and we as a stakeholder resolved to join hands with the government in nipping this in the bud,” he said.
The Corps Marshal of the Federal Roads Safety Corps Dr Boboye Oyeyemi praised the state for again blazing the trail in aggressive enlightenment and education, adding that yearly certification a d recertification of drivers, especially commuter drivers remain the only way to reduce road crashes and deaths on the road.
He however charged the government to consider intermodal transportation, if it hopes to resolve on a sustainable basis the congestion usually experienced in the state.
He said the introduction of a light rails, the opening up of water channels for water transportation and the construction of the fourth mainland bridge would go a long way to provide lasting solution to traffic congestion.
“Lagos has no more room for road expansion. What remains now is to develop other modes as it is done in other smart cities of the world, in order to absorb the pressure on the available network,” he said.
He said the FRSC has advised other state governors to set up more del drivers institute, in order to sanitize dangerous driving habits that is injurious to other road users and have been responsible for deaths on the road.
Executive Director Safety Without Borders Mr Patrick Adenusi said training of drivers would help curb those attitudes that are causing heavy gridlocks across the state, with huge financial consequences to the economy.
Adenusi who said the state may be losing a minimum of N28.8 billion monthly on fuel consumption alone to gridlocks tasked the government to urgently address intermodal transportation if Lagos is ever going to become a smart city.
Addressing the issue of alcohol consumption and driving, Manager Sustainable Development and Alcohol, Guinness Big. PLC, Mrs Titilola Alabi said drivers must be responsible consumers of alcohol.
She said only by drinking responsibly can a driver drive responsibly and avoid being a danger to other road users and his own immediate family members.
The workshop which drew huge attendance from corporate Nigeria, also draw participants from the Road Employers Association of Nigeria,(RTEAN), National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, Taxi Cab Operators and Owners Association, and several other road transportation operators, and other stakeholders.