Lagos residents experience hellish traffic

Residents in Lagos have begun experiencing hellish gridlock which residents have blamed on the ban on commercial motorcycles, popularly called okada on major roads in the state.
Motorists on Wednesday, spent hours in traffic while trying to get to work or other destinations. Commuters taking major roads like the Lagos-Ikorodu Expressway, Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway and roads linking the Lagos island to the mainland experienced what some residents have regarded as one of the worst traffic situations in the state.

Many motorists and passengers were seen sweating and cursing due to the long period of time that they had to spend in the traffic.

Some of the residents who expressed their views, said that the ban on okadas was responsible for the heavy traffic.

A resident, Muyiwa Adetunji, said that residents who have been used to taking okadas within the metropolis "have been forced to bring out their vehicles".

Also, the long queues of vehicles at fuel stations were also believed to have contributed to the traffic congestion.

As such, the scarcity of fuel scarcity of petrol also contributed to the plight of commuters as there were few buses plying the roads. Consequently, the few commercial buses plying the roads hiked their fare.

Most fuel stations were closed and black market operators were selling fuel to motorists way above the pump price of N97 per litre.

At Ikoyi, five litres of fuel on the black market sold for N1500, while ten litres went for N2000 at Onipanu area of the state.

A house wife, Agnes Omale, said she spent five hours to get to the Lagos Island and back from Shomolu.

Another motorist, Daniel Akamo, who spent three hours in the traffic, said moving "from Constain to Ojulegba was like travelling to Ibadan (the capital of Oyo state)".

"It was terrible and my fuel finished in the traffic, I had to buy from the black market. Ten litres was sold to me for N1700. It was not a good thing to experience. Government should do something to stop the traffic and the scarcity of fuel," he added.

A commuter who requested anonymity stated that the commercial bus drivers also hiked their fares.

"The drivers used to collect N100 from Onipanu to Ketu but today, they were collecting N200, some even collected N250. They said fuel is scare and expensive so they shifted the cost on the passengers," the commuter said.

"Also, the bus drivers used to collect N50 from Onipanu to Pako bus-stop, but they increased it to N100."

Commercial motorcycle riders operating on minor roads and within neighbourhoods also hiked their fare.

"Those okadas allowed within the streets also increased their fare because the buses were not available. A fare of N100 was increased to N200. Everything has just turned worst in Lagos  today," said another resident, Chris Ottey.

"Even BRT bus-stops were over crowded with stranded passengers who could not afford the hike in the fares by commercial buses."

Investigations also showed that many residents who got tired of staying at the bus-stops, took to trekking to their destinations.