Night travels have continued to thrive in Africa’s most populous nation amid insecurity across the country and warnings from transport authorities against it.
Transport authorities like the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) said they don’t advise people to move at night, noting that they travel at their own risk if they do.
An FRSC official who would not want his name mentioned said that people travel at night based on ignorance without considering the risk involved.
“If you enter Ibadan expressway, and the fuel finishes along the route, where would the driver buy the fuel? If anything happens, who will come and rescue you?” the official noted.
He added that the National Road Traffic Regulations (NRTR 2012) stipulated that it is safer to travel during the day than at night.
“Several Nigerians that travel at night are posed to several risks such as reduced visibility, increased risk of accidents, poor road conditions, increased crime risk, stranded or lost, and vulnerable to scams,” he said in response to questions.
He further said that Shehu Mohammad, corp marshal of the FRSC has put a lot of initiatives to reduce the risk involved one of them is the visit to different parks to create awareness of the dangers or risks associated with night travel.
However, despite the warnings and insecurities across the country, many Nigerians have attributed their decision to the high cost of transportation and the inconvenience they experience during the day.
Read also: Why we prefer night travels despite insecurity, warning – Nigerians speak
Amara Onyia, a young entrepreneur, told BusinessDay that during the festive period, she travelled at night to Enugu due to the exorbitant price of transport fares.
“I paid N58 thousand for a night trip (including luggage) to Enugu because I couldn’t afford the price for a journey during the day.
“It was also stress-free because I slept all through and when I woke up I was somehow close to my destination,” Onyia said, noting that she could have paid less if she had travelled earlier in December by night.
Another frequent traveler, Happiness Onyeka, a data analyst said that for the three times she had travelled at night, she loved it, noting that it was cheaper and faster to get to her destination.
Chioma Udoka, a business woman said she prefers travelling at night because of the traffic congestion during the day as it takes longer to arrive at her destination.
According to SB Morgen Intel, a Lagos-based research and data analytics firm in its report titled: Roads to Nowhere – A Bumpy Ride Through Nigeria’s Road, poor road conditions in Nigeria impose heavy costs on transportation operators.
The report which engaged 245 drivers across eight major commercial hubs: Abuja, Calabar, Jos, Kano, Lagos, Maiduguri, Onitsha, and Port Harcourt, shed light on their realities and stated that about 86 percent said the state of the roads have led to transport fare increases.
Kelechi Korieocha, co-founder, PKO transport and logistics company, told BusinessDay that during the festive period, people rushed night trips because they knew prices were cheaper and day trips were more expensive.
“People travelled by night because of the cost of transportation.”
“During the day, at the time, they were even charging as much as N60,000 while for night trip, you can see for N45,000.”
The SBM report also stated that delays, prolonged travel times, and increased fuel consumption are the most significant challenges, affecting over 75 percent of operators and hindering economic efficiency.
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