Lagos — The problem of transportation in Lagos State has become a hydra-headed, a problem that has been giving serious concern to the government and the residents. It is also taking its tolls on the social and economic development of the city, as people find it difficult to move around to carry out their legitimate business, a situation that residents and visitors describe as frustrating.

Beside the economic and social implication of the bad transportation system in Lagos, the problem is also posing serious threat to the security of lives and properties of the people as miscreants and armed robbers laid siege on the road and seize the opportunity of the long stretching traffic jam to rob motorists and commuters trapped in the traffic of their money and other valuables.

This problem has however become a campaign issue, as the state is about to go for another election to elect new set of leaders who are expected to improve the social and economic condition of the people. To Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN) the governorship candidate of the Action Congress (AC), the problem is not insurmountable and there is prospect for an effective transportation system through the implementation of an integrated mass transit system.

According to Fashola, to solve the problem of transportation government will have to explore the rail and water transportation system apart from the roads.

He stated that government alone cannot finance the road transport system alone, hence there is need for a public and private partnership in order to expand and build more roads

"The strategy to develop roads now, especially high traffic bearing roads is through private-public partnership system. That is the only way to reduce public expenditure for infrastructure development and therefore reduce the need to tax people excessively, let private sector partner with government,"

Fashola stated that the outgoing government of Senator Bola Tinubu is doing its best in this regard, according to him, Adetokunbo Ademola road was built with the modification of a public private partnership, "Ajose Adeogun was built in conjunction with Zenith Bank- public partnership but the biggest one the present government is doing now is the Lekki Epe Expressway, the idea is to turn that road into a six way expressway, three way coming three way going which will run in parallel to a coastal road containing 18 interchanges and will be a toll road,"

While allaying fears that privatisation of roads will put an additional financial burden on the people, he explained that the interest of commuters has already been factored into it and that people who are indigent will take buses on that road that will be toll exempt.

He said that if elected, his government would attract private investors to develop roads

"We need that investment here as a catalyst to developing our infrastructures, that is the way the whole world is going now, private public sector partnership is what is developing infrastructure in South Africa, it may look difficult in the beginning like when GSM started it was very expensive, but it has dropped and will continue to fall," he assured.

According to him, the over 15 million people residing in Lagos is a huge market, which will be turned into an asset. "The Lekki-Epe road will form the final link to the forth Mainland Bridge it is still on, its implementation has to be staggered because it's going to be financed by public private partnership. It must be the road that has traffic which is the Lagos Epe road that can pay tolls that will be used to justify the investment in the fourth mainland bridge," he further stressed.

Fashola also explained that his government would build and expand rural roads through the department of rural development, which will be set up for the purpose. He said that "if government open more rural roads, rural areas will be accessible and will also help to decongest and reduce the traffic congestion in Lagos,"

The governorship candidate however said that the transportation sector still have one major problem and that has to do with the population size of Lagos "There is a lot of pressure on the roads, Lagos has the highest vehicular density in Nigeria-- 222 vehicles per kilometre and the national average is eleven vehicle per kilometer, so we have a traffic management challenge.

"The traffic problem of Lagos is not necessarily a failure of governance itself, it is rather a failure of management strategists and the challenges will ever remain with a government that did not respond to it. LASMA has been doing psychiatric evaluation, but the focus must change, there must be driver education, " he noted.

Therefore Fashola said that his government would set up a driver education centre in all the local governments areas of the state in order to improve the road culture of the people to teach people the danger of not obeying traffic rules.

He also stated that in order to effectively solve the transportation problem of Lagos as a mega city, government will have to embark on an integrated mass transit, which will involve exploration of the water and rail transportation apart from road.

He said "Lagos is a coastal city, water is an asset to be deplored for transportation and I have done the studies here, Ikorodu to Marina is a 30 minutes drive by ferry and there are 28 communities linkable by water in Lagos, which include Agbara, Amuwo Odofin, Epe Badagry, Ajeromi- Ifelodun and Ilado, which are very viable. Mile 2 to Badagry is viable route; Epe to Marina is also a viable root. We will start with minimum of 50 ferry boats carrying 200 people each with capacity to move in one direction about 15,000 people, if they operate for 10 hours that is moving about 150,000 people in a day. That will be a relief to the roads"

Fashola also stated that his government would only provide the infrastructures necessary for the water transportation such as the jetties. Ferries, and private sector operators will be running water transportation, which he said, will also provide job opportunities "it will also reduce the cost of transporting foods from the farm to the consumers and reduce cost of foods,"

On the light rail system, he said that his administration would pursue the light rail project since according to him; Metroline project, which was conceived before by past administration in the state, is not visible again and cannot be affected now.

"Metro line is now an outdated technology, the corridors set up for metro is already built up. One of those corridors is the Bank Anthony set back to Sheraton to Maryland, is all built up. The alternative is the light rail option, which can run along the median on Ikorodu road. It is simple and efficient," emphasised.

He disclosed that the Federal Government has agreed that Lagos State can use the parallel corridor of rail from Lagos to Kano for the state's light rail project. From Iddo through to Agege to link Alimoso.

Fashola, who is optimistic that he will secure the Lagos vote as governor, said that if the rail and water options are effectively implemented then, the pressures on the road will come down, and the final challenge will be how to link the three transportation systems together.