(SATURDAY FEATURE STORY)
If there are anywhere, motorists suffered serious hardship in Zamfara after passing through hail from the deadly Yankara highway to Gusau is Lalan round about.
The road which is currently under reconstruction by the federal government has become a death trap to drivers and indeed the commuters due to wayward manner in which truck drivers packed their vehicles without recourse to abiding by the traffic rules and regulations.
Petrol tankers, heavy-duty trucks, commercial transport buses, Sharon saloon cars as well as other private car operators have turned the round about to a car resting ground where everyone looks for a better space and parked regardless of whether he has violated the traffic rules or not.
Authorities are seemed to be helpless in terms of instituting the appropriate steps to ensure the safety of that significant portion of that Nigerian highway.
Truck drivers have turned Lalan round about to a permanent truck packing lots and despite public outcries the drivers turned their ears deep and parked their heavy loaded trucks as they wish said Danladi Mai Nama one businessman operating in the area.
Apart from causing serious traffic gridlock that could last for several minutes, pockets of accidents do occur occasionally due to the activities of the truck drivers.
“We have witnessed several accidents here due to selfish interest of some truck drivers who insisted in parking their heavy loaded vehicles here in Lalan at all cost” said another source Ibrahim Maje.
The most unfortunate site of the story of that location of Gusau-Sokoto bypass road, is that the construction company Setraco is handling the upgrade and reconstruction of the other portion of the express road and without adopting any safety measures to ease traffic congestion they just diverted the drivers to using the other lane which now turn to be a very dangerous terrain to motorists. Ibrahim Maje added.
Young girls frying potatoes, those selling food and other adults frying meat and bread had now taken over the most important portion of that Lalan road so much so that there is competition for space between this category of business owners and truck drivers.
Authorities seem to be too relax or rather reluctant in getting that significant road cleared for reasons of lack of confidence.
This medium has written severally to the Federal Comptroller of Works, FRSC Commandant as well as the State Road Traffic Agency (ZAROTA) but to no avail.
THE POSITION OF THE FRSC
I could sometimes remember last year, Thunder Blowers wrote to the Sector Commandant of the FRSC, Mr Iro on this negative development along Lalan round about and asked to know what the corp is doing to address the problem.
The Sector Commandant of the FRSC invited the medium for a discussion where he stated his predicaments about the truck drivers and their habitual manner of parking on the highway.
In that meeting he informed this medium that there is limit to what they can do as a corp because they have instituted all measures to ensure that truck drivers avoid Lalan while parking their vehicles, but he said the measures have failed because they don’t have the right machinery to enforce on these drivers to stop parking on the highway.
He acknowledged that sometimes his men suffered serious threat from these arrogant truck drivers who sometimes even attempted to injured his staff.
He acknowledged the danger involved in parking heavy trucks, especially petrol tankers that usually carry dangerous inflammable substances.
He expressed the difficulties they typically encountered in having a collaboration and synergy with other stakeholders including the police and military to ensure that road has been freed.
POSITION OF THE FEDERAL MINISTRY OF WORKS.
Our medium has also written to the federal Comptroller of Works in Zamfara regarding the measures the ministry is taking to save the road which is undergoing repair as well as evacuate the undue traffic gridlock.
The Ministry has failed to respond to inquiries by Thunder Blowers and since then, no steps are visibly taken to ensure that Lalan round about and indeed the express road has been freed.
The most painful part of the whole thing, Federal government is investing taxpayers money to fix the road and ordinarily the federal ministry of Works needs to have deployed a maintenance strategy and to ensure that the road survived its life span, but it seems that is not put in place.
“A federal road costing Nigeria billions of naira shall not be allowed to be wasted by people frying potatoes and Suya Meat. Said a traveler Yahay Garba Sokoto.
As it is, if nothing is done, that portion of the road at Lalan round about which cost the federal government of Nigeria huge amount of money may not last longer and this will be a bigger challenge for the Ministry of Works which is supposed to inculcate the culture of “value for money”.
WHERE IS ZAMFARA ROAD TRAFFIC AGENCY ZAROTA
It is a public view that if there is anywhere ZAROTA needs to show its full force is at Lalan round about.
This article needs to serve as a wake-up call to the Commander of ZAROTA to ensure full deployment of his men to secure that portion of the road from undue traffic gridlock.
The idea of arresting motorcycles and tricycles for lighter traffic offenses within the metropolitan city is good, but the job awaiting them at Lalan is essentially per good and demanding than what they are doing within the municipality.
ENFORCEMENT OF FINE ERRING TRUCK DRIVERS
This development is also an essential ingredient for the state road traffic agency to generate more money for truck drivers that defaulted.
I think there is a fine for illegal parking of vehicles in Zamfara and ZAROTA needs to revisit the tax books and begin to enforce its statutory provision on these erring truck drivers to boost revenue generation for the state.
THE STATE SHOULD THINK OF COMING UP WITH THE IDEA OF OPENING TRUCK PARKING SPACE
SIMILAR TO THE ONE ESTABLISHED AT TAFA AND MARABAR JOS IN KADUNA
It is essentially important for the state government led by Governor Dauda Lawal to come up with the idea of opening truck parking spaces in any suitable location of the capital city.
It is our strategic thinking that we shall borrow the idea from Kaduna and review how Kaduna is making huge amount of money as tollgate fees from truck drivers.
I could remember for years, state government has allocated a parking space for petrol tanker drivers as the then former Chairman of NUPENG Alh. Bashir Mai Akwai raises concern that a space has been allocated by Zamfara state government but the three states of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara needs to support the union to upgrade the location to the best of its standard.
The Governor of Zamfara should see this as an opportunity meet with the NUPENG officials and ask about the status of that place and collaborate with them to develop a standard truck parking space that will earn the state more money in the name of IGR.
