The Petrochemical Fertilizer Transporters Association (PEFTA), Rivers State branch has finally intervened to clear the clogs of traffic bottlenecks that had often drained drivers, travellers and other road users on the Eleme – Onne axis of the East -West Express Road in Rivers state.
As a result of their intervention, motorists and other road users on that ever busy axis of the road now heave a big sigh of relief as military personnel now control traffic, making it flow smoothly thereby reducing the bottlenecks often experienced on that axis of the road.
Over the years, the Eleme/Onne axis of the East/West Road has been notorious with heavy duty vehicles that always cause traffic jam on that road due to illegal and incessant wrong parking of trucks. The situation was worsened when contractors moved in to rehabilitate that deplorable portion of the road.
But for over a month now, since the military personnel took over the traffic control on that road, sanity has forcefully return with the heavy duty drivers behaving in an orderly manner.
Thescale.com.ng investigations revealed that the traffic improvement on that axis of the road is courtesy of the Petrochemical Fertilizer Transporters Association (PEFTA).
When contacted, Vice Chairman PEFTA, Indorama chapter, Comrade Eric Deso Barydoo agreed that the traffic nightmares motorists and travellers experienced on that road, even with the road construction going on has become worrisome and alarming.
When asked about the choice of military personnel, Comrade Eric Deso Barydoo said: “As an association, we’ve spent resources and time to train, educate and reorientate our drivers, yet the menace continue. And the Police and Traffic Officers on that axis of the road, even the Road Safety people seem compromised, which made their efforts in curbing the incessant parking and wrong driving proved abortive.”
He continued by saying that when the association found out that the traffic problem on that axis of the road was man made, PEFTA had to engage the military personnel, pointing out that because the military are not the conventional traffic control officers, the fear factor returned the lost sanity to drivers, stressing that for over a month that PEFTA engaged the military, they have not witnessed any heavy traffic bottleneck again.
Although, Comrade Barydoo said that more works needs to be done because few Fuel stations still allow illegal parking of trucks along the road while dispensing diesel, he concluded by commending drivers and other road users for cooperating with the military personnel.
