The Lagos State Government has commissioned the Lagos Traffic Radio 96.1 to manage traffic in the mega-city.
The traffic radio which will operate on 96.1 FM, will be on air from 5am to midnight daily.
It will, among others, feature traffic report, weather information, auto-ville, auto maintenance/ spare, rail and air transport and general traffic information.
The radio has commenced full operation today and it will assist Lagosians plan their journey, reduce traffic snarl, reduce pressure on the road, reduce air pollution, occasion by gas emission as a result of running engine and the economy.
Babatunde Fashola (SAN), at the commissioning said the Lagos Traffic Radio was another of his administration’s innovations to manage traffic in the mega-city and added that it would enable residents plan their day and reduce travel time to and from work or business.
He put the vehicular density of the state at 224 vehicles per kilometer and added that traffic could be greatly eased, especially at rush hours if people who had no compelling reason to use their vehicles at such hours could keep away from the roads.
“The Lagos Traffic Radio will help you make informed choice as to the route to follow when you set out to work or business in the morning. The radio will give you first hand information on the traffic situation so that you can manage your time well and save cost,” he said.
The governor appealed to motorists in the state to put their vehicles on the roads only when absolutely necessary for free flow of traffic.
He advised that people could also use their mobile phones to transact business or contact friends without necessarily using their vehicles or make their trips after the rush hours adding that doing otherwise would only compound the traffic situation and increase travel time with all its disadvantages.
“Time is money. Sometimes, you need not make that journey. By the use of your mobile phone, you can transact that business or contact that friend instead of putting your vehicle on the road. Time is money. If you are caught in traffic, you lose time, you lose money and you suffer stress”, Fashola said
The Governor, who said the project took a better part of three years to accomplish, thanked the immediate former Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Opeyemi Bamidele who, according to him, was the initiator of the project and who worked assiduously to see it through.
Lateef Ibirogba, commissioner for Information and Strategy said the Lagos Traffic Radio was part of the several innovative responses of the present administration to the perennial traffic challenges on the State adding that it was aimed at making the state an investors delight.
“The station”, the Commissioner said, “is prepared for the challenges of meeting the expectations of the 21st Century listening audience in terms of content and facilities”, adding that the feedback since it commenced test transmission on 96.1 MHZ since the last three weeks was very satisfactory.
Noting that the station would form an invaluable avenue for the education of Lagosians on best traffic and road use practices, Ibirogba said the expectation of government was that “as the station commences full operation, there will be drastic reduction in traffic gridlocks on our roads as motorists would be well informed on traffic situations and thus plan their journeys more scientifically”.
