NEWS FLASH: Atilo Atide, We’re back on Lagos roads, VIS tells motorists

The Vehicle Inspection Service in Lagos State says its officers are back on Lagos roads to carry out its statutory life-saving mandate through enforcement of motor vehicles’ roadworthiness.

The Director of VIS, Mr Akin-George Fashola, spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos on Thursday.

He said residents of the state, especially road users, thought the Vehicle Inspection Officers were off the roads.

Former Lagos Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, had banned the VIOs from operating on the roads over reported excesses.

But Fashola said, “Since the advent of this administration, citizens still believe that VIS or VIOs are still off the roads.

Related: These Are The Duties and Functions of LASTMA, VIO and FRSC Officers

“As a matter of fact, we are back on the roads to do the needful. We have embraced a lot of new practices and procedures. We have embraced technology and that still needs the presence of VIOs on our roads in Lagos where technology is limited.

“The presence of VIOs is required, so we are on the road. A lot of people still believe that we are still under the previous ban from the road.’’

According to him, the period of the ban was for the vehicle inspectors to strategise and return with fresh ideas and ways of performing their duties.

He said for the entire period the VIS was off the road, most drivers and vehicle owners became careless about roadworthiness, particulars and conditions of their vehicles.

“Some of the citizens are having difficulties with us being on the road now and we are also having difficulties with them because they don’t want to believe that we are back on roads,’’ the VIO boss said.

Fashola said only 50 per cent of vehicles in the state were roadworthy.

See The New Look Of Agric-Isawo Road, Ikorodu As Rehabilitation Continues - PHOTOS

Work resumes on Agric-Isawo Road, Ikorodu as promised by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu. The Agric-Isawo Road has been a hellish place for motorists and residents especially when it rains. The State Govt has decided to intervene by mandating Hi-Tech back to work which they have done and started the road rehabilitation. 

AutoReportNG got some exclusives of these roads and how they are working round the clock to see that they finish the road on time. 

Check out the road construction below...

Lagos State Govt Donates 25 New Patrol Vehicles Into RRS Fleets - PHOTOS

Lagos State Government through the State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF) today handed over 25 patrol vehicles to the Rapid Response Squad (RRS).

The vehicles were this afternoon handed over to the new State Commissioner of Police, CP Hakeem Odumusu at the State House, Alausa, Ikeja.

Presenting the vehicles on behalf of the Chairman and Board of the fund, the Executive Secretary, Abdulrrazaq Balogun stated that the vehicles were part of the periodic injection of additional vehicles to enhance the operational coverage and increase their visibility of police in the state.

Balogun added that the provision of additional vehicles would assist the police in combating crime, especially at the yuletide period when a crime is always on the rise.

He noted that the fund appreciated the strides of RRS in combating crime in the state adding that the feedback it has been getting from Lagosians on the assistance of the squad has been very positive. He added that the funds would continue to support the squad.

He thanked the donors for supporting the funds and members of the Nigerian Police Force for committing their lives towards the safety of lives and property of the people.

Receiving the vehicles, the Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu assured that the police would make judicious use of the vehicles.

He stated that the handing over of the vehicles would serve as a challenge to the police to ensure that the lives and property of people are protected at all times.

He thanked funds but also solicited for more logistics to enhance the operational performance of the police in the state.

RRS Rescued Bus Driver Who Got Sick While On Motion On 3rd Mainland Bridge - Photos

Also in attendance were the Commander, Rapid Response Squad, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Tunji Disu and Assistant Commissioner of Police Adewale Ajao.

251 Road Crashes, 156 Deaths Recorded From January To October In Ondo - FRSC

A total of 156 deaths were recorded from the month of January and October 2019 from 251 recorded road crashes in Ondo State.

Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps in the state, Rotimi Adeleye, made the disclosure in Akure, the state capital, on Wednesday.

He said, "A total of 104 crashes and 65 deaths were recorded in the first quarter, 68 crashes and 47 deaths in the second quarter while 79 accidents and 44 deaths were recorded in the third quarter."

According to Adeleye, the FRSC in the state was training more personnel to ensure sanity was restored on the roads.

READ: These Are The Duties and Functions of LASTMA, VIO and FRSC Officers

He added, “The fourth quarter happens to be the Yuletide period, which obviously on yearly basis, is the period that we believe that we do more of enlightenment.

"We do more of visibility, we do more of enforcement and more of putting all machineries in place in preparation for Christmas and New Year festivities."

He pleaded with vehicle owners to avoid reckless driving, noting that anyone found breaking traffic rules would be made to face the law

Policemen Driving Against Traffic Crush Two Okada Passengers To Death In Ogun State - PHOTOS

Some policemen allegedly driving against the traffic, on Monday, crushed two motorcycle passengers to death on the Long Bridge end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway in Ogun State.

The motorcyclist was also said to have sustained injuries during the crash involving a white Toyota Hilux pickup van with number plate GGE 960 DD and a Bajaj motorcycle with number plate MEK 418 VH.

According to eyewitnesses, the policemen in the patrol vehicle took to their heels after the accident occurred around 10.50am, while emergency responders, who rushed to the scene, took the injured victim to the hospital.

The remains of the deceased were said to have been deposited in the Lagos State Emergency Centre at the old tollgate area.

An eyewitness, who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “When the accident happened, the policemen ran out of the vehicle and jumped off the bridge and ran away. No one could catch them.”

At the scene of the accident, other commercial motorcyclists, while mourning the death of the victims, threatened to burn the van.

During the rescue operation, a Federal Road Safety Corps official, who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “We got the distress call and we came down to the scene, but before we got here, we realised that the people around had done the rescue.”

     Read: Lagos Gov., Sanwo-Olu Apprehends Traffic Defaulters At CMS, Apogbon Bridge - Photos

When contacted, the Sector Commander, FRSC, Ogun State, Clement Oladele, said one of the three victims involved in the accident died.

Oladele stated, “Three people were involved in the accident, one died and the two injured victims were rescued to the Lagos State Emergency Centre, Ojota. The corpse of the dead victim was deposited in the hospital’s mortuary.

“The suspected cause of the accident was route violation as the driver of the vehicle was speeding while driving against the traffic. The vehicles involved were a white Toyota Hilux pickup van with number plate GGE 960 DD and a Bajaj motorcycle with number plate MEK 418 VH.”

However, the spokesperson for the police in Ogun State, Abimbola Oyeyemi, said two passengers died, while the motorcyclist sustained injuries and was rushed to the hospital, where he is responding to treatment.

He said the vehicle involved was registered and branded, adding that it had been impounded and the owner/driver would be traced and made to face justice.

Oyeyemi said driving against the traffic was a serious offence and security agents were not allowed to do so except in emergencies, and such vehicle would be a security vehicle or an ambulance, which must carry a sign that would alert people to the emergency.

He added that investigation into the accident was ongoing and gave an assurance that the driver would be identified, arrested and prosecuted, adding that the Commissioner of Police in the state had directed that everything possible must be done to apprehend those involved, whether they were policemen or ordinary citizens.

READ: Arrest On Delivery Bikes: Lagos State Government Takes Its Stand

Warning To Drivers: That CCTV May Put You In Jail or Have Your Car Impounded

This is a warning to all drivers in Lagos that are always in a hurry to break the traffic rules, your days of reckoning are coming and it's coming very very fast.

A driver got a message from the Lagos VIS that he broke the traffic rules and as a first-time offender, he was billed for 30,000 naira. That sounds strange, many questions like how are they able to track him, how did they know he didn't wait for the traffic light, how come they were able to know and get his details, all these and more we shall dissect shortly.

This is the format of the SMS they sent across...

Your vehicle (plate number) committed a TRAFFIC OFFENCE with bill no xxxxxx. Visit VIS HQ Alausa within 7 days to avoid impoundment".

In 2017/2018, The Lagos State Government decided to go digital in the handling of its traffic management, they took a step by upgrading and their vehicle inspection facilities across the state, they went and understudy a system in the UK called the ANPR. The mechanism displayed is the Automatic Number Plate Recognition. An ANPR is a CCTV camera that can send a driver back to its village if such is not careful.

According to Wikipedia, an ANPR Machine can be used to store the images captured by the cameras as well as the text from the license plate, with some configurable to store a photograph of the driver.
The systems commonly use infrared lighting to allow the camera to take the picture at any time of day or night, with the ANPR technology taking into account plate numbering variations from place to place.

The machine put in place is called the Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and it comes in the form of a CCTV. To the drivers, it's just an ordinary CCTV but to the government, it's a tracking device which helps to track and trail any defaulters.

Let's see how this ANPR works for public enlightenment. According to police.uk, An Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology is used to help detect, deter and disrupt criminality at a local, force, regional and national level, including tackling travelling criminals, Organised Crime Groups and terrorists. ANPR provides lines of enquiry and evidence in the investigation of crime and is used by law enforcement agencies. It may be safe to say that it works alone without supervision on a 24/7 working mode. That means that CCTV at Apapa, Ikoyi, VI, Ikeja may just be an ANPR just waiting for you to cross the line.

How it works

Gone are those days when VIO officials will be running after your car, this time, you hand over your self to the government official.

As a vehicle passes an ANPR camera, its registration number is read and instantly checked against database records of vehicles of interest. Police officers can intercept and stop a vehicle, check it for evidence and, where necessary, make arrests. A record for all vehicles passing by a camera is stored, including those for vehicles that are not known to be of interest at the time of the read that may in appropriate circumstances be accessed for investigative purposes. The use of ANPR in this way has proved to be important in the detection of many offences, including locating stolen vehicles, tackling uninsured vehicle use and solving cases of terrorism, major and organized crime. It also allows officers’ attention to be drawn to offending vehicles whilst allowing law-abiding drivers to go about their business unhindered.

We noticed that some of these ANPR cameras are already installed across some strategic spots in Lagos but the VIS/LASG are not telling us where they are, all they do is stand at a data collection point and see things from afar. But we have it on a good note there is one in Ikeja precisely close to Alausa Sect/Shoprite Mall, there is one too at Ikoyi and VI respectively.

How offenders are caught

When a driver breaks any traffic rule and the ANPR automatically capture your license plate, it sends it to the database where your information is. For example, if a driver of LASG-02 breaks the traffic code, the camera scans and picks the details with pictorial evidence, sends to the admin, the admin do a search on this plate number base on the information you use when registering or renewing any of your particulars, most times they are verified which makes it easier for them to easily append you.

These are some of the images if the ANPR cameras we got for you when they are undergoing training in Lagos late last year.

Images Courtesy:
Soft Alliance

Truck Loaded With Stolen Petrol Caught Fire In Ipaja, LASEMA Averts Tragedy - Photos

Following the Pipeline Vandalism on Monday, 11th November 2019 at Abesan Estate, Boys Town end of Ipaja, behind Honeyland School at about 8:18 a.m where fire broke out due to activities of oil pipeline vandals, and a truck at Ijora bridge inward Iganmu that constituted obstruction to free vehicular activities when more than half of its consignment got stuck beneath the bridge as a result of miscalculations by its driver, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency's Director-General, Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu explained that there was no loss of lives in the two incidences.

Osanyintolu stated that a tanker with registration number AGL 591 XP laden with 36,000 litres of stolen Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, the second of such to exit the site of the vandalized pipeline at the back of Honeyland School, Abesan Estate, while trying to escape came in contact with an electric pole which resulted into a fire outbreak making the oil tanker burn midway before it was curtailed by the relevant agencies. 

Speaking further, the LASEMA Boss reiterated that no casualties or fatalities were recorded, nor were any injuries incurred as residents of the area rallied support for the combined response team of LASEMA and the Lagos State Fire Service but two cars belonging to yet - to - be identified residents, were razed, Toyota Camry with registration number EPE 79 DF and completely burnt a Volkswagen saloon car beyond recognition, while activities of the vandals left PMS spilt in the entire area which had been cordoned off on arrival of the LASEMA team for safety of residents and rescue teams in tandem with International best practices.

Read: See The Moment LRU Pulled A Fallen Containerize Truck From Cappa Road, Lagos

After putting out the fire completely, officials of Pipeline Maintenance/Security Committee from NNPC/PPMC whom the Agency's officials at the incident scene contacted, on arrival, trans-loaded the remaining PMS in the half-burnt tanker of the vandals, with officials of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, on standby to take possession of the oil Tanker truck afterwards.

Having completed the task of safely Transloading the remaining PMS from the vandal's articulated vehicle, the affected back tyres of the tanker were refixed to enable its recovery to the Head Office of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, at Alausa with the assistance of the Agency's Heavy-Duty Equipment.

In a related development, LASEMA recovered an accident truck at Ijora bridge inward Iganmu that constituted an obstruction to free vehicular activities when more than half of its consignment got stuck beneath the bridge as a result of miscalculations by its driver.

The truck with registration number OKLAHOMA 517-2GJ conveying a loaded consignment got stuck under the bridge due to carelessness on the part of the driver which made it's cargo tilt off the truck on impact, effectively cutting off other road users by obstructing free vehicular activities.

However, no loss of lives were recorded, nor were any injuries sustained at the scene of the incident where the Agency's heavy-duty equipment compiling of the Crane, Lowbed and Super Metro were deployed for a speedy recovery of the articulated vehicle off the bridge, to enable free vehicular activities for all other road users.

LASEMA, LASTMA, FRSC and Police were responders at the Ijora under bridge accident scene.

See The Ongoing Road Construction At Lagos Badagry Expressway - Photos

Many have been asking, what is going on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway especially those living around Tradefair, Mile 2, Ojo Alaba International among other roads linking to Festac etc. It is no doubt that those staying at this place are going through tough times all thanks to the bad road.

It will be recalled that in July, The Lagos State Government mandated the CCECC team back to work to make sure that they continue the abandoned road and also made sure the motors are properly due. The flagged off which was done by the deputy governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat said, the return to the road not only marks the fulfillment of a promise made during a recent visit on June 2, 2019 to the people of the State by the Sanwo-Olu Administration but is also designed to bring relief to commuters who daily experience hardship on the road.

It is on this note that the constant traffic gridlock at the Tradefair axis under the bridge of Lagos Badagry Expressway would end in a couple of few days. CCECC had already commenced the aliphatic pavement work as they intend to divert traffic to this axis soon to be completed. Serious construction work is also still ongoing in Lagos bound of the road.

Remember that in June, we did a feature on The Pains, Agony and Trauma Badagry Expressway Users Go Through where we pictured people lining up to cross the road because the road was bad.

It is aftermath of this that the Lagos State Government did the official flagging off of the 10-Lane Lagos-Badagry Expressway. It will also be recalled that in June, Gov Sanwo-Olu along with his entourage inspected the Lagos-Badagry Expressway to see the damage done on this road.

AutoReportNG got some exclusives images of how work is going on this site... One commendable point is that the contractor is using concrete, not the regular asphalt as we are used to.

Photo credit:
Zannu Thomans