IBRAHIM QUADRI
In a decisive move to ensure urban mobility, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) has commenced a comprehensive clean-up enforcement campaign across critical traffic corridors within the State.
Adebayo Taofiq, Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA made this known in a statement made available to newsmen.
He noted that the operation, coordinated under the leadership of Mr. Olalekan Bakare-Oki, General Manager of LASTMA, commenced today with full deployment across high-density zones, notably Oyingbo, Iddo, Eja-Lonibu, Adeniji Adele, Sabo, Jibowu (Inter-State Terminal), and Oshodi—locales that have long contended with chronic congestion, indiscriminate parking, flagrant environmental violations, and general traffic anarchy.
During the initial enforcement phase, no fewer than 235 vehicles—comprising 38 private automobiles,156 painted Volkswagen commercial buses (Danfo), 19 Minibuses (Korope)/tricycles, 5 haulage trucks, and 17 Inter-State passenger buses—were impounded for various breaches of the Lagos State Transport Sector Reform Law of 2018. Offences ranged from unlawful encroachment upon pedestrian pathways, obstruction of vehicular flow, establishment of illegal terminals, to reckless disregard for established traffic regulations.
Taofiq disclosed five articulated trucks were intercepted atop the Adeniji Adele Bridge while illicitly offloading livestock, including rams, cows, and abattoir waste, thus constituting a grave environmental defilement and compromising both public safety and the structural integrity of the bridge.
The drivers, in manifest contempt for sanitation laws, are now subject to imminent judicial proceedings.
This sweeping enforcement is being executed at the directive of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Hon. Sola Giwa, who has persistently championed a strategic, coordinated response to the entrenched culture of indiscipline that continues to undermine the State’s transportation landscape.
The operation will cover all five administrative divisions of Lagos State—Ikeja, Badagry, Ikorodu, Lagos Island, and Epe—with LASTMA personnel and partner agencies deploying a comprehensive mix of regulatory, logistical, and technological assets to reclaim public roadways from abuse and restore the urban commons to lawful users.
“LASTMA is now operating under a strict zero-tolerance mandate against traffic infractions.
All impounded vehicles will be promptly arraigned before the Lagos State Mobile Court for prosecution. The era of impunity on our roads is over,” he declared with unflinching resolve.
“This operation is not an attack on any demographic or commercial interest; it is an overdue rectification of systemic dysfunction. We call upon every road user to embrace this moment as an invitation to collective civic renewal,” he asserted.
Mr. Bakare-Oki issued a warning that any vehicle found engaging in illegal parking, obstructing traffic flow, or violating directional rules (e.g., one-way driving) will henceforth be summarily impounded.
He noted that the Authority is fully committed to deploying the full spectrum of legal, operational, and digital surveillance tools to ensure orderliness across the State’s expansive road network.
The clean-up enforcement drive is an integral part of the Lagos State Government’s overarching urban regeneration initiative, which seeks to enhance quality of life, elevate the State’s livability index, and instill a sustainable culture of traffic sanity and environmental stewardship.
The Authority further urged members of the public, particularly motorists, to report all instances of traffic violations, environmental nuisances, and misconduct by traffic personnel via LASTMA’s toll-free hotline: 080000527862.
Every bona fide complaint, the agency assures, will receive immediate and appropriate redress.
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