The House of Representatives on Thursday called for urgent measures to end persistent traffic gridlock along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway and address operational inefficiencies in the Abuja-Kaduna rail service, which have subjected commuters to prolonged delays, economic losses and security risks.
The resolution was passed following the adoption of a motion on the “recurrent traffic gridlock on Abuja-Kaduna expressway and the operational inefficiencies of the Abuja-Kaduna Rail service”, sponsored by Hon. Umar Ajilo, who solicited the House’s intervention.
Leading the debate, Hon. Ajilo expressed grave concern over the persistent traffic congestion along the expressway, attributing the situation to uncoordinated construction activities, narrowed carriageways, inadequate diversion routes, indiscriminate parking by articulated vehicles and poorly managed security checkpoints.
He lamented that thousands of commuters, private motorists, commercial transport operators and freight trucks conveying agricultural produce and essential goods were routinely stranded for several hours, resulting in economic losses, spoilage of perishable goods, health emergencies and increased exposure to criminal activities and highway banditry.
The Kaduna lawmaker also raised concerns over the declining operational efficiency of the Abuja-Kaduna train service, particularly the drastic reduction in daily passenger trips, frequent disruptions to schedules and an ineffective ticketing system characterised by online booking bottlenecks, ticket racketeering and artificial scarcity.
According to him, the situation had forced desperate passengers to resort to black-market ticket purchases at exorbitant rates, thereby undermining the railway service’s capacity to provide a reliable alternative for commuters affected by the persistent road congestion.
While noting that the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway remained a critical economic and social link connecting the Federal Capital Territory to Kaduna State and the North-West, North-East and North-Central geopolitical zones, he argued that the prolonged disruption of movement along the corridor had wider economic and security implications.
He further observed that the Abuja-Kaduna rail service, established to provide safe, reliable and efficient mass transportation, was failing to accommodate the increasing number of passengers seeking alternatives to road transportation.
Citing Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which provides that the security and welfare of citizens shall be the primary purpose of government, the lawmaker stressed the need for urgent government intervention to protect commuters and facilitate the movement of people and goods.
Consequently, the House urged the Federal Ministry of Works and contractors handling the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Road project to immediately introduce effective traffic management strategies, construct motorable bypasses and diversion routes around active construction zones and expedite work on critical bottlenecks along the corridor.
The House also called on the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Nigeria Police Force to establish a joint rapid-response traffic task force along the expressway to remove broken-down vehicles, enforce lane discipline and streamline security checkpoints to prevent avoidable traffic congestion.
Similarly, the House urged the Federal Ministry of Transportation and the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) to urgently increase the frequency of daily train services along the Abuja-Kaduna corridor and deploy additional coaches to accommodate growing passenger demand.
The joint Committees on Works, Land Transport and FRSC were subsequently mandated to inspect the expressway and railway terminals, summon the relevant ministers and managing directors of the agencies concerned, and submit their findings and recommendations to the House within two weeks for further legislative action.
The joint Committees are expected to conduct an immediate on-the-spot assessment of the expressway and railway terminals and report back within two weeks for further legislative action.
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