Director, FCT Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DRTS), Major Adamu Argungu (Rtd) has said that as part of efforts to check road accidents in the city, the administration would construct weigh bridges at all the entry points into the city before the end of this year.
The weigh bridges which he said were already included in the 2011 budget would help to check the excess luggage carried by articulated vehicles, which usually cause the vehicles to have accidents and also contribute to wear out the roads.
Argungu, who was speaking at a forum organised by his office, for stakeholders in the transportation sector, to cross fertilise ideas to check the rate of accidents in the city, lamented that even though the department was aware of its duties, it was sometimes constrained by inadequate man power and operational vehicles.
He, however, said that all that would soon be history as the FCT administration was in the process of employing about 750 staff for the department, just as the office would soon take delivery of about 35 Toyota Hilux vans, 25 motorcycles and heavy duty tow trucks.
The director further lamented the indiscipline attitude of drivers on the road and the refusal of vehicle owners to maintain their vehicles, saying those were some of the issues that were responsible for the accidents witnessed on the roads.
He urged vehicle owners, especially truck owners to ensure that their vehicles are fully serviced before they use them on the roads, saying it is difficult for the government to carry out enforcement alone, which was where the role of the unions became very crucial as they could help in educating their members and insist that they do the right thing. He added that union officials should not hesitate to report erring members.
In his contribution, chairman of the Nigeria Union of Mines (Transport Section), FCT chapter, Alhaji Hamza Mohammed, urged the FCT administration to consider the expansion of the Mpape road, saying it was the only road that led to the quarry and heavy duty trucks always compete for space with smaller vehicles on the road, a situation which often led to accidents.
He also advocated that separate roads should be created and dedicated for heavy duty trucks use as was the practice in other climes.
The secretary of Nigeria Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Alhaji Aliyu Hassan, blamed the nature of some of the roads on the accidents that occur in the city. He cited the Nyanya-Mararaba road which was very sloppy.
Hassan added that it was important that the DRTS took the issue of driver licensing very seriously, as they sometimes issued licenses to underage and unqualified drivers, who also contributed to the problem.
Another stakeholder, Mr. Alozie, said that existing laws must be enforced to solve the problem. He argued that there were laws in place to check every problem but that the problem was enforcement.
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