25th March, 2011
The Lagos State government has called on the Federal Government to repair all the refineries in the country and save Lagosians from the agony they undergo daily in traffic due to the indiscriminate parking of haulage vehicles and tankers on the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Mr. Kayode Opeifa spoke while on a visit to Mile 2 and Tin Can Island area of Lagos, southwest Nigeria, to see for himself the traffic gridlock occasioned by the indiscriminate parking of tankers and haulage trucks in the area.
He said the traffic was heavy because the Nigeria Ports Authority, NPA, did not make adequate provision for the parking of haulage vehicles, thus congesting the Ports.
He said immediately the National Association of Road Transport Owners, NARTO, called off its strike over the high cost of diesel, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, started issuing tickets to tanker drivers before loading petroleum products in Lagos .
“The tanker drivers on getting to Lagos discovered that there was scarcity of fuel as some of the tank farms and marketers that had fuel were rationing it, while others do not load at all because of the scarcity. They thus parked on the roads with the expectation that since they have loading tickets, it would soon be their turn.
The Special Adviser implored the Federal Government to stop the approval of more tank farms in the State as some of those already approved do not have truck loading bays.
He implored motorists to maintain their lanes, especially during rush hour and avoid driving against the flow of traffic so that the officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA can work to keep the traffic moving.
Corroborating the comments of the Special Adviser, the Head of Operations, NARTO, Mr Aloga Ogbongo said the Nigeria Ports Authority, NPA and the Terminal Operators at the ports should live up to expectations, adding that lack of Transit Park inside the Port and logistics problem at the entrance of the Port were causing the long queues of the haulage trucks
Reacting on the tankers illegal parking, the Secretary General of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers, PTD, Comrade Tayo Aboyeji appreciated the efforts of the Lagos State Government in handling the matter, urging the Federal Government to also repair the refineries and make fuel available.
Similarly, an Ex-officio of the Union , Lagos Zonal Council, Comrade Adekunle Akinlaja, appealed to the Lagos State government not to tow the tankers but to give them more time so that the Federal Government could resolve the fuel scarcity as the problem caused by the tankers was not deliberate.
