Lagos and the danfo quagmire

Expectedly, a recent disclosure by Lagos State governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, of plans to rid Lagos roads of danfo buses for a more efficient mass transport system is being trailed by mixed reactions.

Though the state government is yet to reveal how this new plan would be implemented, it must be affirmed that the phasing out of danfo buses on Lagos major roads is long overdue. A large percentage of the chaos that we daily witness on Lagos roads is partly caused by danfo drivers whose recklessness knows no bound.

Public transportation is too important and strategic to be committed into the hands of unruly and disorganized individuals. The traffic situation of every city determines the volume of investment it attracts. The efficiency with which people, goods and services can move from one point to the other largely determines the quality of life of any society.

We live in a rapidly changing world where socio-economic system evolves speedily. That we still debate over the phasing out of a chaotic transport system that has been in existence for God-knows-how-long speaks volumes of the slow pace of development in our society over the years.

Given the necessary political will, danfo can be effectively taken off major Lagos roads. The needless fear that such move would render operatives of danfo jobless, thereby increasing the rate of crime in the state, should not be entertained. The state government could, among others, help those among them with proven and profitable skills, courtesy the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, to secure loans to pursue their chosen enterprise. It would be recalled that cheques worth about N1 billion were recently presented to some 705 beneficiaries through the Employment Trust Fund.

Also, the Nigerian Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) could be assisted with loans to get franchise that would enable their members to be part of whatever new arrangement the government is trying to put in place. But this must come with a proviso that they must be ready to imbibe new thinking and orientation. This is to ensure that a new wine is not placed in an old bottle.

Similarly, for commuters not to be unduly affected by the new development, more buses could be injected into the BRT scheme to cover more routes across the state. In creating these new routes, priority should be given to areas with greater population density such as Badagry, Mowe-Ibafo, Sango-Ota, Alimosho, among others.

The BRT scheme could as well be designed to include commuting within short distances within a particular local government or location. For instance, commuters within Apapa, Ikeja, Island, Alimosho, Yaba, etc could rely on BRT buses within the locations for their daily and routine movement. Once this is done and the operation of BRT in these locations becomes reliable, effective and efficient, more commuters would opt to leave their cars at home and would willingly embrace the BRT alternative. For the system to become more reliable, effective arrangements must be made for constant repair and refurbishment of buses in the BRT fleet. A well-planned culture of maintenance must be strictly adhered to.

On the whole, the need to embrace intermodal transportation cannot be over-emphasized, given the complex and indispensable nature of the sector in Lagos. This is exactly why the state government has been exploring other forms of transportation in the state to reduce over-reliance on road transportation.

Today, from one operation route in 2007, Lagos is running water transport on many routes (Ikorodu-Marina/CMS; Marina-Mile 2; Ikorodu-Addax/Falomo; Ikorodu-Ebute Ero; Marina-Ijegun Egba-Ebute Ojo; Mile 2-Marina/CMS-Mekwen-Falomo; Badore-Ijede; Badore-Five Cowries; Marina-Oworonshonki; Ebute Ojo-Ijegun Egba; Oworonshonki-Five Cowries, and Baiyeku-Langbasa).

On rail transportation, the state government is working on the construction of urban rail-based systems covering seven major corridors of high commuter traffic demand within and beyond metropolitan Lagos extending to border areas with states like Ogun and Oyo. The seven lines link the major population and activity centres in the state, as well as taking advantage, where possible, of existing transport corridors.

The network is geared towards integrating with planned and existing water transport and BRT routes. In this layout, there are the north-south corridor between Agbado and Iddo along the Nigerian Railway corridor; the eastern corridor to serve the Lekki to Epe axis; and the western corridor to serve the Mile 2-Okokomaiko axis. The seven corridors will be connected by a central ring road between Victoria Island and Lagos Island.

By the time the Lagos light rail project becomes effective and expanded, coupled with renewed efforts to improve water transportation in addition to numerous on-going roads development projects across the state, it is expected that a more robust public transportation would evolve in the state and Lagosians would be the better for it. But then, we all need to join hands with the state government to make this dream a reality by protecting public infrastructure as well as strictly adhering to all traffic rules and regulations.

 

Tayo Ogunbiyi