The national traffic coordinator of the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) has disclosed that three hundred and one (301) offenders including motorcycle riders and vehicle drivers have been arrested for various traffic offences since the inception of the national stakeholders' Operation Waste Improvement and Decoration (WID) launched last December.

Supt. Ambrose Sovula made this disclosure while updating a cross-section of media practitioners on the latest activities in the implementation of the national operation to curb the high spate of street trading and other lawless acts that are affecting the country.

According to Supt. Sovula, most of the traffic offenders caught have been charged to court and some of them have already paid their fines to the state. He also noted that assessment from all sectors of society has revealed that the on-going Operation WID has impacted well on the transport sector, as the previous congested traffic situation around Freetown city is now experiencing a clear and fast vehicular movement especially for residents in the eastern part of the city.

Speaking at the forum, traffic coordinator west, ASP Salifu Conteh, noted that since the commencement of the new operation, traffic police officers have been undertaking round-the-clock monitoring at key traffic intersections to make sure that there is no blockage on the routes. ASP Conteh explained that majority of those arrested are motorcyclists whom he described as most lawless.

According to ASP Manso aka Track-One attached to the Central Police Division, passengers and pedestrians usually face difficulties but this has minimized drastically. He further called on the government to put more emphasis on the operation so that the real purposes of the streets can be realized. He also promised that more arrests will be made as the operation continues.