Sequel to the announcement of the Operation No-Road-Side-Trading in January 2021 by the Oyo State Road Transport Management Authority (OYRTMA), the Authority has again gone tough on road-side vehicle dealers across the State particularly in Ogbomosho and some parts of Ibadan metropolis.
This follows a massive impoundment of vehicles indiscriminately parked on pedestrian portions of road corridors and in most cases occupying about half of the roads thereby leading to severe Road Traffic Accidents (RTAs) and avoidable traffic jam that leads to loss of productive hours that discourages potential investors in the State.
While speaking with newsmen during the special ‘clean-up’ operations executed today Saturday 24th July, 2021 at Takie, Ogbomoso, Akala-Expressway and Oluyole Estate Axis of Ibadan, the Executive Chairman OYRTMA, Mogaji Akin Fagbemi PhD., said; “if you must recall, we’ve commenced this operation since January this year owing to the rising cases of road crashes caused by the roadside motor dealers and mechanics across the State. The act of buying and selling of cars or articulated vehicles at arbitrary locations on the roads completely negates the principles of this administration under His Excellency, The Executive Governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde. You’ll agree with me that it becomes practically impossible to achieve a sane environment when traffic becomes the order of the day and in most cases, the rising traffic loggerheads experienced across Ibadan metropolis is largely due to human factors such as buying and selling on the roads. OYRTMA would not stand by and look at people using their business activities to kill the business of government which is basically the protection of lives and properties of the good people of the State”, he said.
Furthermore, the Executive Chairman said the exercise is a continuous one. In his words, “We have had series of meetings with the organized associations of vehicle dealers in the State such as the Association of Motor Dealers of Nigeria (AMDON), Mechanic Associations as well as leaderships of the market men and women with agreements that their members would desist from arbitrary buying and selling activities on the road corridors failure of which would attract severe consequences’’, Dr. Fagbemi concluded
