LASTMA impounds 84 vehicles in Lagos traffic crackdown

The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority has impounded 84 commercial and private vehicles during an enforcement operation at several traffic flashpoints in the state. LASTMA General Manager Olalekan Bakare-Oki disclosed this in a statement issued on Sunday in Lagos. He said the operation covered Idumota, Iddo, Ijora-Olopa, Costain and Onipanu.

According to Bakare-Oki, the exercise was intended to restore order and enforce traffic regulations along corridors where repeated violations by motorists and commercial bus operators had threatened road safety and the movement of traffic. He singled out the practice of commercial buses reversing against traffic on the one-way stretch from Iddo to Idumota through Carter Bridge. He described the manoeuvre as hazardous, saying it could surprise motorists, commuters and pedestrians and lead to collisions, injuries and fatalities.

The enforcement operation met resistance from some individuals, the general manager said. He added that LASTMA personnel were physically assaulted and injured while carrying out their duties, while some alleged miscreants and hoodlums who attacked and damaged operational vehicles were arrested. Bakare-Oki also warned against the use of under-bridge spaces, road setbacks and unauthorised locations as illegal garages.

He said such practices obstructed traffic management and created risks to public safety. LASTMA urged motorists, transport unions and commercial bus operators to avoid one-way driving, dangerous reversing, illegal parking, indiscriminate loading and unauthorised garages. Further violations, it said, would attract enforcement under Lagos State traffic laws.