By News Editor
Lagos State Government may begin the issuance of driver’s licence any time soon, the Commissioner of Transportation Dr. Frederic Oladeinde, said yesterday.
Speaking during his first interactive session with journalists, which held at the Ministry’s boardroom, the commissioner said the new licence, is the outcome of several years of engagement between the state government and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).
He said: “As part of what we have been doing since we assumed office, we can disclose that soon, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu will launch the new driver’s licence, signaling that the state is on for a new deal of transportation reforms.”
Oladeinde, who was accompanied by the Permanent Secretary Dr Kamaldeen Olowosago, and other top management officers, stated this, just as he disclosed that a reviewed Lagos State Transportation Policy is ready and may be unveiled by the state governor in May.
The commissioner who did not disclose whether the unveiling would be part of the activities slated for the commemoration of the third year anniversary of the administration, said the policy which was submitted to its predecessor shortly before the government came on board had to undergo review as it was found not robust enough to capture the state’s Strategic Transportation Masterplan (STEM).
He said the state with over two million vehicles account for above national average of vehicles per kilometre, a development which makes managing transportation in the state a bit complex and requires deliberate planning.
He said the Sanwo-Olu administration is determined to reform the transportation sector and ensure that small passenger vehicles, (popularly called danfos), are taken off the road and replaced by more comfortable and affordable mass transit buses that could take in more passengers.
Speaking on the menace of okada and tricycles which seemed to have continued to defy the government’s enforcement, Oladeinde said government has been holding back on full enforcement because of its determination to provide alternative means of commuting to residents of the state.
“If government decided to embark on full enforcement of the law, the state would be thrown into crisis because a lot of people still relied on those modes of transportation as a means of movement, but by the time we are able to provide better alternatives, it would be easy to clamp down on these operators,” he said.
He however gave a clue that when the time comes, the government may go for total ban of okada and tricycle operation in the state full rather than the partial ban that presently obtain.
He explained that the Lagos Ride Taxis, the First and Last Mile (FLM) buses, the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) buses, and the ongoing massive reforms of the waterways, as well as the construction of the Blue and Red Rail lines scheduled to be delivered before the end of the year, are all geared toward providing comfortable transportation alternatives to Lagosians.
Oladeinde who admitted the proliferation of bad eggs in the Lagos State Traffic Management Agency (LASTMA) as well as the Abandoned Vehicles Agency (LSAVA), said the government would not relent in welding the big stick against any officer caught extorting the people, adding that while punitive actions would continue to be taken against erring officers, efforts would continue in deploying technology for full enforcement of traffic regulations in the state.
On junction improvements, Oladeinde said the ministry has completed junction work improvements on 10 major junctions and completed traffic signalization in 20 other junctions that has never had signal lights. He said the ministry is determined to deliver all the 60 junctions identified by his men when the administration took off in 2019, adding that when this is done, Lagosians would experience a reduction in traffic gridlock.