Lagos State will release a new transport policy before October that bans small buses, danfos, and koropesfrom operating on major roads on Lagos Island.
The policy also bans individual operatorship of commercial vehicles on the roads from CMS to Ajah.
The Director of the Lagos State Vehicle Inspection Services (VIS) told Nigeria Info exclusively on Wednesday that only companies with a fleet of at least 50 buses would be licensed to operate commuter transport services on the axis.
“All public commuter transport from CMS all the way to Ajah will take a new format. We will not allow individuals to run public transport anymore,” Engr. Akin George Fashola said.
“And the minimum number of vehicles allowed in that corporation is 50. Anything less than that, you are not going to get the license.”
Engr. Fashola said the licensed companies will operate with “high-capacity buses” of no less than 50 passenger seats.
Smaller buses and individual transporters will only be allowed to operate on inner roads.
The Lagos State Metropolitan Transport Agency (LAMATA) has identified about 53 corridors on Lagos Island to be designated for different kinds of vehicles, Engr. Fashola said.
The vehicles will be color-coded to indicate the routes and corridors where their services are limited.
“All vehicles that ply these areas will be clearly and marked, color-coded so that they are easy to identify and picked out from a whole bunch of people,” he said.
The VIS chief added that the government has been in talks with the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) to prevent the stopping of buses on the axis to collect fees.
Transport companies intent on being licensed to operate on the CMS-Ajah axis have until 14 July to indicate their interest.
