The passage of people or vehicles along routes of transportation. In case you are wondering,that’s freedictionary.com's definition of traffic. Well, for me, the meaning is somewhat different in lagos.Specifically, it’s more like 'the daily hell lagosians go through on the city's roads’.What has gone so drastically wrong? In the last couple of weeks, traffic in the nation’s commercial capital has been monumental.
Only a naïve individual can today give an accurate Estimated Time of Arrival for his/her journey (from one destination to another)in our dear Eko.Every foreigner who's been here rightly accords it with the undisputed title of ''universal champ''in this regard.
Recently, a friend of mine likened lagos to New York in America. I largely agree, from the perspective of 'daily hustle & bustle, huge population & diversity of its residents'. However, the major distinction between the Big Apple & Lagos is this: there are alternative & effective means of transportation over there e.g. trains.
The reasons behind the current madness in the nation’s ex-capital are quite obvious & seemingly endless. Overpopulation in relation to habitable landmass,overwhelming inbound migration,bad roads,disregard of basic traffic rules, no efficient/alternative transportation options, the shockingly unwise BRT lanes, significant volume of businesses setting up in one particular area of the state as well as lack of govt. commitment to strictly comply with residential /commercial masterplans.Even the State Govt's agency,LASTMA,seems to have psychologically given up.
Gosh,I miss the 80s.I grew up living on the island during my dad’s public servant days. Every weekday then was like a Sunday, movement-wise. You could drive from Ahmadu Bello Way, V.I to say, Church of Assumption, Falomo in 5 mins.Fact.Not with an okada, guys.These days,one's fortunate to make it in less than an hr on a Monday or Tuesday.
To add insult to injury, the previously sweet Saturday has now joined its cousins (i.e. Monday-Friday) in this notoriety. A drive from Dolphin to VI on Saturdays can keep you on the road for 2 hrs.The only respite most lagosians enjoy at the moment are on Sundays. Not being intentionally cynical, I fear that this lone day of sanity would soon disappear with the way our dear city is going.
Most people(smartly)don’t leave their homes till Saturday evenings nowadays.However, what of those who have weddings, mechanic visits, important appointments,shopping etc during the day?
I must also mention that some areas are considerably worse than others.Lekki & infamous VI easily come to most minds.
I heard there’s a ferry that currently takes people (& their vehicles) from lekki to some other part of the city but that’s another safety risk that personally, I’m not ready to take. I’d rather be pissed off in a standstill than risk drowning.
Seriously,even developed countries experience traffic but at least there are efficient alternatives. Even when the situation gets really bad, you can see clear efforts by the authorities to urgently address them.
People, when would we ever get to the promised land?
2 comments:
My Bro...this problem is more than major.Like Afro Music Icon Fela Kuti sang "Suffering and Smiling".The sooner people in power start truly serving the public,instead of greedily lining their pockets the better for the nation.People in charge of the relevant authorities have to be held accountable.Enough said!
To answer your question "when will we get to the promised land"? .... who knows. The problem with Lagos and much of Nigeria is simply an issue with planning and forecasting.
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