New BRT Lane Worsens Traffic Along Abuja-Keffi Way

Driving around Abuja city has become more stressful because of the number of cars that has increased in recent times. Moreso in some satellite towns, coming into the city centre could be such a terrible experience due to traffic, JERRY EMMANSON writes on the recent transport development.

In June 3 2013, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) introduced a new transport scheme aimed at providing efficient transport operation within the territory. It deployed high capacity buses to phase out mini-buses popularly referred to as ‘Araba’ within the city centre.

Following the implementation of the policy, commuters had been subjected to untold stress of moving to places of work and business on time, due to the operations of the buses, having to queue up at the terminus until it gets filled before embarking.

One of the aims of the policy was to decongest traffic along entry routes into the city and to curb the chaos the mini-buses were causing within the city centre. But as witnessed today, the traffic has become even worse because a lot of resident have bought personal cars to escape from the hassles of boarding public transport.

But recently, it has been observed that the authority of the FCT has taken a another step into its transportation policy by providing a route for high capacity buses also known as BRT, similar to what obtains in Lagos State.

But the disturbing development around the maraba-nyanya axis is that some of the kerbs demarcating the road which is made of plastic have been destroyed by unknown persons even before they are being fully placed around designated routes. This shows that motorists who are already trying to cope with the increasing traffic situation will have to face even tougher condition of making their way into the city centre.

A civil servant Mr. Godwin Ujah, who spoke to Leadership Sunday, said the plan is not achievable considering the length of the road. “It won’t work because the road is too narrow. Government should jettison the plan. Can you recall when the former minister introduced speed-breakers which was later removed after motorists complained their cars were damaged as a result, only for another minister to come and removed them, all these where done with public funds, and I think is high-time public officers are made to account for senseless policies as this. What we need is an alternative means of transport like the light rail that is still underway. But in the meantime FRSC should deploy its traffic marshals to guide vehicular movement on these routes.

Also speaking on the new plan, Ms Nkiru Okafor, a radio presenter, condemn the project saying the FCT authority should rather think more of creating alternative routes and not creating BRT lanes. “Well I personally understand why the FCT feel a need to copy Lagos State and create a BRT lane, because of the growing rate of traffic in the FCT. But at the same time we seem to have overlooked the obvious, which in the Lagos master plan all the roads built had service lanes which were ultimately converted to BRT lanes. That is missing in the layout of roads in the Abuja-Keffi expressway roads. The roads aren't wide enough talk more of dedicating one lane solely for BRT. There is a need for alternate routes, not creation of BRT lanes”, she said.