Truck menace: Transit Parks to the rescue

Abiodun Oba

To resolve the issue of trucking, the Federal government is working assiduously to ensure that trucks are put in a particular location called the transit park.

Dr Anthonia Ekpa, Director of Road Transport and Mass Transit Administration, Federal Ministry of Transport, said that the ministry would inaugurate 10 Truck Transit Parks (TTP) across the country in 2019 to reduce truck accidents.

NAN report available to nigeriamaritime360.com showed that Ekpa disclosed this at a news conference at the side-lines of the Annual General Meeting of the Sub-Sahara Africa Transport Policy Programme (SSATP) held in Abuja.

According to the director, the Federal Government was partnering with state governments and private investors to build the parks.

Ekpa explained that the vision is to build transit parks in all the 36 states of the federation, starting with one in each of the six geo-political zone and areas that trucks usually transit from like, Lagos, Lokoja etc.

She said the strategy to address the menace of truck congestion at the seaports and highways would help in moving agricultural commodities and solid mineral resources from the hinterland to other ports as well as haulage.

According to her, the meeting with the theme focus “Africa’s rapid urbanization and the response to urban mobility in the digital era” is being attended by transport ministers, directors and other stakeholders in Africa countries to brainstorm on the way forward on urban transports and mobility.

The Director said that the initiative will reduce the number of accidents involving trucks, as drivers of articulated vehicles will have a place to rest properly before entering the road.

Ekpa said that apart from accidents that occur due to tiredness, many truck drivers go against the law to convey certain products at wrong hours.

The Director said that more enforcement is required to tackle the reckless of truck drivers.