There is a growing concern in Lagos, especially among commuters and patrons of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) as Nigeria records increased cases of the Coronavirus pandemic.
A higher percentage of the total 11 cases the country is currently battling with are traceable to Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial cum economic hub, with an estimated population of 22 million people.
The vast population of the state amid inadequate means of public transportation means that commuters most times are clamped like ‘sardines’ in available buses.
This is the case with the BRT buses which operate Ikorodu-Lagos Island among other routes and ferry an average of 160,000 passengers daily.
Whereas the buses have a capacity for about 49 passengers (sitting), some 20 to 30 additional passengers are often seen cramped (standing), thus raising concerns at the time the killer virus is seemingly spreading fast in the country.
Akin Abayomi, Lagos commissioner for health has urged the residents to practise social distancing. “The best way to slow the rate is to halt the movement of the virus from person to person,” said Abayomi.
Expectedly, the state government has announced some measures to check the spread, including banning religious congregations of over 50 persons.
The government has also announced the closure of public and private schools from Monday, March 23, 2020, but nothing has been said about the mode of public transportation in the commercial city.
