The Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, LASTMA, Taofiq Adebayo, confirmed the development in a statement on Sunday.
He said the General Manager of LASTMA, Bolaji Oreagba while welcoming the Sierra Leonean traffic officials at his office in Oshodi, said the main purpose for the establishment of the agency during the administration of the former governor, Bola Tinubu, was to transform the state transportation system and to ensure the free flow of traffic and reduction in road crashes in the state.
Adebayo said, “Mr Oreagba disclosed further that to properly manage and control traffic in Lagos, the agency operates an efficient operational guideline which comprises of seven Comptrollers that covers the three Senatorial Districts in the state, 21 Commanders and 45 Zonal Heads including BRT (1 & 2) as well as the Free Trade Zone.
“He stated that all working ethics of the authority, including all its operations, are being regulated by the Lagos State Transport Sector Reform Law of 2018 as reviewed.
“The General Manager confirmed that the government is currently adopting modern technology innovations in addressing transportation challenges by installing Automatic Number Plates Recognition Camera which captures images of vehicle license plates on roads, CCTV cameras, and also equipping traffic officers with the newly introduced hand-held Traffic Management Solution Device which captures real-time traffic violations on the roads, in addition to signalised intersection and junction improvement.”
Adebayo said the Lagos State Government also established a Mobile Court to adjudicate on traffic-related matters since the agency could not be a judge in its case against offenders.
“Mr Oreagba averred that some of the traffic offences referred to the Lagos Mobile Court by the agency include obstructions, driving against traffic ‘one-way’, illegal parking, illegal u-turn, dropping/picking passengers at undesignated bus stops, disobeying traffic lights/officials, reckless driving and illegal parking on walkways/kerbs among others.
“He stressed that the agency collaborates with the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority by sanitising the BRT corridors from the motoring public to pave the way for smooth movement of commuters from one designation to another across the state,” Adebayo said.
During his address, Adebayo said the Director, Ministry of Transportation and Aviation of Sierra Leone and leader of the team, Hindolo Shiaka, thanked Oreagba for the detailed presentation of the agency’s operational guidelines and legal framework in line with dictates of effective traffic management and control.
He added, “We came here from our country to understudy the operational guidelines including the legal framework of LASTMA in line with traffic management and control to upgrade our transportation system.”
