Lagos State, known for its vibrant culture, busy and crowded markets, and significant economic activities, however, heavy traffic congestion, frustrates its residents and impacts business, especially during peak hours.
“Lagos traffic is something else, especially when I go to the island for site installation work. The traffic while coming to the mainland usually changes my system automatically, discomfort comes, and most of the time, you will be trying to meet a deadline, and traffic would just spoil everything,” Henry Okpala, a businessman, said.
During the peak hours in Lagos state, which are from 6:00 am to 10:00 am and 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm, traffic congestion gets bad due to the large numbers of commuters moving to and from work and other destinations.
The state’s roads are sometimes blocked due to the traffic caused by several road incidents such as accidents, vehicle breakdowns, roadworks, careless drivers, and bad roads.
Adebayo Taofiq, director, public affairs and enlightenment department of LASTMA, attributed the root cause of traffic congestion in Lagos to fragmented and poorly coordinated informal transport systems, frequent vehicle breakdowns, especially heavy-duty trucks, and frequent violations of traffic laws, including illegal parking, driving against traffic, and the indiscriminate picking and dropping of passengers at unauthorised locations.
“Street trading, roadside markets, and the indiscriminate loading and offloading of goods, especially during peak hours, encroach upon active roadways, significantly reducing carriageway capacity contribute immensely to congestion.
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“Many neighbourhoods depend heavily on a limited number of major arterial roads. Consequently, any obstruction, whether due to accidents, breakdowns, or roadworks, inevitably leads to severe gridlock due to the absence of viable alternate routes,” Taofiq said.
According to a BusinessDay report, a major traffic incident happened earlier this month, putting major roads under lockdown due to traffic caused by the shock closure of the Independence Bridge and an early-morning heavy downpour in the city.
“Most commuters spent upwards of six hours on distances that ordinarily would take them two to three hours. Transport fare also shot up by over 100 percent,” a BusinessDay report showed.
Victoria Mmuoebolam, a copywriter/digital media strategist, said that her productivity for the day is usually low, especially when she encounters traffic going to work.
“I get to work tired, and some days, I have to send a lateness notice to my HR ahead,” Mmuoebolam said.
She said that the last traffic she encountered on her way home affected her health so much that she had to take the week off to take care of herself because she got ill afterwards.
Oreoluwa Popoola, operations manager, Niteo Limited, who usually takes the Egbeda to Ikeja route, told BusinessDay that Lagos traffic takes a toll on him.
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“On the days I manage to get to work early, I often feel very sleepy. By the time I’m heading back home, I’m completely drained, only to repeat the same routine the next morning. It’s exhausting, both physically and mentally,” Popoola said.
However, the public enlightenment officer said that the state government are implementing various strategies like the expansion of the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (LRMT) system (Blue and Red Line), the introduction of the e-call up system for trucks, the deployment of CCTV cameras at key transportation points, the establishment of the Lagos Transport Police (LTP), and the promotion of eco-friendly transportation alternatives to reduce traffic in the state.
He added that the government has planned to introduce the Intelligent Transport System (ITS) within the next two years, including the development of a modern Traffic Control Centre, and the implementation of Area Traffic Control systems with interlinked signals and dynamic cycle times.
“Efforts are underway to develop eight Quality Bus Corridors (QBCs) and two transport interchanges at Marina and Mile 2, enhancing the efficiency and coverage of the BRT system,” Taofiq said.
