Separating conflicting traffics in Ogun

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NIGERIA: OVER the years, urban road system is dotted with cross junctions or what the professional refers to as road intersections, Road intersections is simply a point where two or more roads meet, hence traffic flow into each other at the point creating the challenges of movement between two or more traffic stream.

Traffic challenges at some of these intersections are not noticeable until recently that urban population increased tremendously with corresponding increase in auto-mobile usage, hence, maneuvering intersection become a serious task for road users. Such that grid locks, traffic congestion, delay and incessant killing of road users. This write up therefore, examining the essence of separating two or more traffic stream at intersections.

Road traffic means the passage of people or vehicle along route of transportation, the orderly movement of vehicles along the roads. While traffic conflict is an event that involves two or more moving vehicles approaching each other in a traffic flow situation in such a way that a collision is imminent,  unless some traffic management measures were provided to manage the traffic situation.

Two type of intersection can be identified; Regulated and Unregulated, a regulated intersection is such that signs, signal and road marking are adequately install to guide road users at intersection, this often time also has a traffic officer considering and allocating right of ways to each traffic stream at intersection. While unregulated is an intersection that gives road users opportunity to use their discretion and basic knowledge of yielding right of ways to others road users at intersections. Generally, the rules that says yield right of way to traffic on your left is often abuse by road users. This causing lock jam, congestion and conflict at intersections.

A few numbers of road intersection in town are not adequately regulated, either with signals or even human being, this makes the road intersection very porous and prone to conflicting vehicular movement which can leads to crashes or traffic luck jam that often result in congestion and delay in most town and cities. There are some other intersections of higher hierarchy of roads that traffic signals has rather cause further delay and congestion due to the high volume of traffic the intersection needs to accommodate per units of time.

Experience show that, chaotic traffic situation occur at intersection arisen from road users behavior and the poor road alignment and facilities provided. It is however, the responsibility of the government and her agencies to regulate traffic situation and provide measure to manage the flow for efficient and safety of movement of goods and services. However, records has it that crashes occurring at unregulated intersection are usually very devastating as lives are usually involved.

Prior to 2014 Abeokuta like other major cities in Ogun State such as otta, Ijebu-ode, sagamu are characterized by unregulated intersection where vehicles interacting with high level of risk of collision  especially at peak periods of early morning (7-9am) and in the evening between (4-7pm) causing lock jam, congestion, delay and crashes. These phenomena of traffic congestion and conflict as largely been attributed to a number of factors by the professional, these factor include;  poor road network alignment, lack of road ancillary facilities (road marking and sign), bad road users behavior and lack of convenient public transport system in the city.

With the influx of people into the state after the returned to democratic government in 1999, Ogun State was upgraded from a Civil Servant State or Semi-Agrian cities into economic destination of choice in West African sub-region. Giving its strategic location in the national context as transit corridor to a number of the West African Countries and to Lagos, the economic hub of Nigeria, the pressure on the road traffic system was increasingly noticed in all the cities this led the establishment of Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Corps (TRACE) to manage the emerging traffic system and resolve traffic conflict at most road intersections. This agency of government, has contentiously manned most intersections in the past 10 years of her operations. The agency manned such intersection as Mobalufon in Ijebu-Ode, Sabo in Sagamu, Ibara, Sapon and Iyana-mortuary in Abeokuta to mention but few

Little were the achievement in terms of managing traffic conflict. However, the TRACE operation was limited or hindered by existing road system in most of the cities, this corroborate with the fact that the traffic  operation has tripod approach to solve traffic problems, this is what the professionals refers to 3Es of traffic management which includes Engineering, Education and Enforcement.

The agency has largely employ effectively two of these approach which are Education and Enforcement, while engineering received little attention, until recently when this present Administration took the bull by the horn, with massive investment in road infrastructure through urban renewal programme In all the major cities.

Of interest of the author, are the major grade separation infrastructure constructed across the state, which are used to separate conflicting traffic stream. These infrastructures has not only separating conflict traffic it has increased safety, reduced journey time and increased intersection capacity through uninterrupted free flow of traffic which the flying-over facilities has achieved. Taken Mobalufon intersection at Ijebu-Ode as an example a primary arterial road, (Sagamu-Benin express way) intersection by another arterial road, (Ijebu-Ode – Ikorodu road) both are high volume and fast moving traffic road, report from this intersection revealed that on the average, traffic crashes occur once or twice per day prior to the construction of the fly-over. This incessant crashes has stopped since the fly-over is open to public use. In the same vein the Ibara round about at Abeokuta was almost tagged the mortuary of Okada rider before the present administration came to the rescue of the public with the fly-over.

Another major conflicting traffic is the pedestrian vehicular conflicts, this occurs majorly at city Centre and or the Central Business District (CBD). Where pedestrian population is high. Such area includes Ibara, Itoku and Sapon in Abeokuta; Sango ota, Oju-ore In Ota; Lagos Garage, Sabo in Ijebu-ode and Sagamu respectively. In recent time, walkway and pedestrian foot bridges were constructed to reduce the level of pedestrian vehicular interaction. A good example of the facilities is at Sokori area of Abeokuta. This facilities presently serve much population of students that crosses Ita-eko-Sokori road especially during the peak period of morning and afternoon.

The effort so far by Ogun State Government at separating conflicting traffic is yielding positive impact on the life of the citizenry identifying the merit of separating conflict traffic in the State, the following are the impacts; traffic congestion that are to be a regular phenomenon on major highways as since disappear, road users can easily predict their journey time with any mode of travelling, increase safety and efficiency of road traffic operations, pedestrian safety has greatly improved with less cases of pedestrian crashes recorded and lastly orderliness and obedience to traffic rules has also be greatly achieve at road intersections.

• Olaide Ogundairo is an Information Officer with Ogun State Ministry of Information and Strategy.