Oluwaseun Osiyemi, the Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, says the state government is planning to buy no fewer than 2,050 vehicles to ease movement across the state.
Osiyemi said this in an interview with the NAN on Sunday. He said that the procurement of the vehicles –Bus Rapid Transit — would further address queues at bus stations.
According to him, more BRT buses will also be provided with the support of an oil company that has promised to support the government’s effort.
According to him, “We’re aware of the long queues in all our stations, especially on Mondays. We’re working better to serve the good people of Lagos State. “We’re almost done with the procurement of 2,000 BRT buses to ease the queues in the stations.
“You know Lagos State believes in public and private partnership, therefore, an oil company is giving us 50 electric buses in addition to the ones the state government is procuring. “So, residents of Lagos State will no longer have to suffer the long queues,” he said.
The state government had earlier announced a plan to reduce transportation fares by 25 percent on all routes, the commissioner said that the announcement was one of the palliative measures to check queues in bus stations.
The Lagos Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (LAMATA) established America’s First Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) scheme, which went into operation on March 17, 2008, in Lagos, Nigeria, to reduce the number of vehicles navigating the constantly congested roads as well as to reduce, curtail, the level of gas emission, and curb the menace constituted by the commercial bus drivers in Lagos State.
It is important to note that the public transportation sector, especially the BRT in Lagos is characterized by long waiting queues, irregularity, and uncertainty around the bus arrival time which has frustrated so many to resulted in alternative transportation mediums or perhaps the purchase of individual cars, which has further increased the number of vehicles on our ever-busy roads, particularly during the peak period.
The BRT operation in the state has its dedicated lane which has been instrumental to its expansion.
The Bus Rapid Transit aimed at addressing unnecessary delays of commuters at some major bus terminals, which is sometimes connected to the non-adherence of buses to the scheduled timetable.
BRT’s operation has significantly impacted the traveling pattern of commuters around the corridor; hence, further improvement in its service will enhance the confidence of the commuters in its service.
