JONAS AGWU

which is my focus for now.Before I dwell on my focus for this week which will run till next week, please allow me to indulge you on the report of a poll conducted sometimes in 2013 by the Corps to gauge attitude of motorists. In that year, FRSC contracted NOIPolls to do a road attitudinal survey across 6 locations in Nigeria. To measure the level of compliance on the road, the survey was conducted across pre- identified corridors within 9hrs of the day (morning, noon and evening) for 12 days. The observation monitored the following: lane discipline, seatbelt/ crash helmet compliance, compliance to overloading rules, traffic light /road signs obedience and the number plate usage. The survey was carried out in 6 locations; Abuja, Lagos, Owerri, Benin, Kaduna, and Gombe. The survey was conducted via observational study. 6 corridors in total selected by the clients were observed across all locations and 6 extra corridors were added by NOIPolls, giving a total of 12 corridors observed. Observation was done by 8:30 am – 5:30 pm daily for 5 days. A total of 70,180 vehicles/ bikes were observed across all 6 locations with 29,482 on the highway, and 40,698 on township roads. A total of vehicle/bikes observed by location were 13,426 in Abuja, 11,503 in gombe, 11,903 in owerri, 7936 in benin, 10,435 in lagos, and 14,977 in Kaduna. 83% of the total observed diver/riders obeyed road signs / traffic light with more observed on township roads (87%) than highways (77) %. Abuja 98% had the highest number of driver/rider that obeyed road signs/ traffic lights. The highest number of drivers/riders that obeyed road signs /traffic lights was recorded on Monday (96%) and the highest rate of obedience was shown by other car drivers/riders (86%).In Abuja, from the point of observation, the vast majority 98%) of vehicles / bikes observed showed lane discipline. However, the highest proportion 31%) of vehicles / bikes that did not show lane discipline was recorded on Sunday. Only (2% of the observed driver/riders did not adhere to road signs/ traffic lights and of this number, tricycle riders (6%) were most disobedient to road signs / traffic light. I must confess that when this report was presented, I could not comprehend the finding although the former Corps Marshal,Osita Chidoka wisely explained the basis for the finding and the reason why I felt the way I did. Despite this clarification, I regularly receive text messages, emails and phone calls from concern motorists on the increasing cases of lane indiscipline. The most recent was when a couple of my friends during the old boys meeting of CMS Grammar School, Lagos,Abuja Chapter carpeted and verbally battered my colleagues and I at the Federal Road Safety Corps for what one of them described as our lack luster attitude to curb the increasing cases of lane indiscipline which is prevalent in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

The colleague whom I will simply refer to as Senior Ken, wondered why this was happening in a place like Abuja despite the prevalence of functional traffic lights and numerous junctions meant to make driving easier. He lamented that it is also common on the highway to find drivers who despite the rule that states that the left lane is for overtaking while the right lane is for slower vehicles, could remain on the left lane during a three to six hours drive without making way for other road users as mandated by the traffic regulations. At traffic light points and junctions, such drivers instead of remaining in the middle lane since they are driving straight and freeing the right or left lanes for drivers turning to either the left or right, would arrogantly block the right or the left lane and would not give way even when all the vehicles behind blare their horn to alert them. He also reminded me that lane indiscipline or what he also called reckless and irresponsible driving is also pronounced in other parts of the country including the major highways. This madness he posited ,is responsible for, road traffic crashes, gridlocks in major routes within the Federal Capital such as the Nyanya-Karu axis,Kubwa highway,Gwarimpa,just to mention a few and daily paints our nation as lawless.