Following the ban on commercial motorcycles and tricycles in some areas of the state, the Lagos State government has rolled out 65 buses and 14 commercial ferries as a palliative measure to reduce the transportation hassle caused by the ban.
On Monday, the Managing Director of Lagos Bus Services Limited, Idowu Oguntona, announced the deployment of 65 buses. He added that the buses will ply seven routes across the affected areas, including Oshodi-Ajah, Inner Marina-Ajah, Obalende-Ajah, CMS-Ajah, Ikeja-Ojota, Ikeja-Ogba and Berger-Ojota.
Similarly, the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Tuesday, inaugurated 14 ferries that can each convey about 40 to 60 passengers at once.
The ferries will commute along Ikorodu, Ebute Ero, CMS, Badore and Ikoyi areas of the state, according to the statement released.
However, there have been several protests by ride-hailing startups and commercial motorcyclist calling the for regulation and not outright ban of their operation.
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Speaking during the unveiling, Sanwo-Olu explained that there was no going back on the ban because of the securities and safety concerns despite the protest.
“Let me tell you about the ban which we just enforced. We will sustain the ban on okadas and tricycles, mainly because of security and safety reasons. Security and safety of citizens are paramount to any government. As a responsible government, we will not fold our arms and allow security breach in the state.
Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Lagos State Governor
Concerning the difficulty of transportation in affected areas, the governor in his speech assured Lagosian that before the end of the year that the number of ferries would increase to 30 and more than 500 buses would be injected into the state transport system.
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Over 90% of movement in Lagos is done by road. The governor has revealed that he wishes to exploit water transportation as one of the strategies to de-congest the traffic on the roads.
The okada ban has left many Lagosians commuting around affected areas trekking due to lack of vehicles. The new buses and ferries might help but serving a city with a population of about 21 million, their effects may go unnoticed.
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