By Monsuru Olowoopejo

Thousands of commuters, penultimate Monday, were stranded on the ever-busy Lagos-Badagry Expressway, as private bus operators popularly called Coaster Mass Transit withdrew their services from the roads to protest their extortion by the two major transport unions in the state.

A Lagos commercial bus popularly called DANFO

The operators alleged that the two transport unions-National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW and Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, RTEAN, have reneged on the agreement signed between both parties.

Vanguard gathered that the union and the operators in 2004 signed agreement that the transport operators should only pay levies in approved garages in the state.

Therefore, worried by the continuous act of the unions, the over 500 operators withdrew their vehicles and vowed that the strike would not end until the unions adhere to the 2004 signed agreements.

As the strike bites harder on commuters, who are left at the mercy of the Yellow commercial buses, known as danfo buses, effort by the state Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Kayode Opeifa to pacify the striking operators to return to the road met brick wall at press time.

At the meeting held behind closed door at the Alausa Secretariat of the Ministry of Transportation, between the commissioner, representatives of the striking operators and the unions led by the NURTW chairman, Mr. Tajudeen Agbede during the week ended in a deadlock.

Speaking to Vanguard, Chairman of the mass transit operators, Mr. Abiodun Adedoyin said: “We have been appealing to the unions for over three years to adhere to the agreement signed in 2004. But rather than addressing the issues, they increased the levies.”

According to him, “Each driver pays N22, 000 daily. A driver pays N6, 700 to RTEAN and N14, 250 to NURTW. When we couldn’t bear the sufferings any more, we wrote to the Commissioner, to address the issue but when we didn’t receive any response, we decided that strike would be the best option to attract the attention of the government.”

Adedoyin said that the operators started the strike on November 10, 2014, adding that “We are not ready to return until our demands are met.”

Similarly, the vice chairman of the operators, Mr. Olatunji Badru lamented that “We pay illegal fees daily. The government only allowed the collection of union levies in garages, and on this route, we have only four garages-Miles 2, CMS, Okokomaiko and Oyingbo. But the unions will demand that we pay in all the over 23 bus stops on this route, It is unfair and unacceptable to us.” Expressing his displeasure on the action of the unions, Badru said “The suffering is too much. We can no longer feed our family. We are indebted and in order not to increase the transport fare, we decided that the strike would address the grey areas.

Commuters react

Meanwhile, Mr. Micheal Johnson, a commuter who was among the hundreds left stranded said “The action of the coaster drivers severely inconvenienced us (commuters). Due to their action, I was unable to reach work early yesterday, here I am again today.”