By Olasunkanmi Akoni

In order to achieve drastic reduction in the frequency of accidents involving articulated vehicles in the country, stakeholders in the haulage business as well as Senator Gbenga Ashafa have stressed the need to enforce stricter driving regulations on the road.

This came following tanker fire of Thursday, June 28^th, 2018 on the Otedola Bridge, along Lagos Ibadan Expressway, where 12 Nigerians lost their lives and over 54 vehicles burnt.

“I suggest that the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, come together with a view to inculcating, mandatory safety checks on all tankers at the point of loading to ascertain the condition of the tank and the road worthiness of the vehicles to haul the products.

“This would entail the issuance of safety certificate to each tanker for every trip to the depot, without which such tanker would not be allowed to load the products or leave the premises.

“Finally, haulage companies must invest in the training and retraining of their drivers. They must also ensure that the trucks on the road are in pristine road worthy conditions. The lives of your drivers and other road users are of equal importance.”  

“I am confident that at the end of this summit, we would have been able to agree on practical and workable solutions towards keeping our drivers, roads and investment safer, as we work towards the growth and speedy development of our economy.”