The Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) has urged the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to extend the enforcement of the use of speed limiters to private motorists during Christmas.
It also said that the enforcement of the use of breathalyzers should cover not just commercial motorists but private drivers as well.
The Chairman of the Lagos chapter of the association, Alhaji Musa Muhammed, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Lagos.
Muhammed urged the corps to begin the enforcement of the use of the speed limiters with owners of private vehicles.
“The union has professional drivers who have valid driver’s licences.
“This issue of speed limiters should also apply to private vehicle owners because we ply the same roads.
“Some of the private car owners are not professional drivers; a majority of them learn to drive on their estates within a week.
“After that, they want to embark on long journeys.
“FRSC should exempt only government vehicles and that of law enforcement agencies,” Muhammed said.
The RTEAN chairman appealed to the corps to review the speed limiter policy as it could compromise the security of the lives of especially commercial drivers and passengers.
“Some of our members have been chased by armed robbers on the highways.
“The stories would have been different if both the commercial vehicles and the cars being used by the armed robbers had speed limiters.
“We welcome the development (use of speed limiters), but we want all motorists to mount the device on their vehicles for safety reasons to avoid giving undue advantages to a segment of the motoring public especially during the festive period,” he said.
Mr Hyginus Omeje, the Lagos State FRSC Sector Commander, had said that the enforcement of the speed limiters would soon be extended to private vehicles.
Omeje said that commercial vehicles were targeted first because of the high number of passengers being transported in such vehicles.
“We want to get the policy right first from the commercial vehicles and freight operators which involve many passengers.
“Any crash that happens to these commercial vehicles can have multiple effects because it involves many people who represent families.
“That is why we want to establish the policy first in that sector.
“We will later make it to cover private vehicles on the road to curb recklessness on the expressways,” he said. (NAN)
