Yemisi Izuora
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) during its special Easter patrol impounded 3,205 vehicles, and apprehended 5,630 offenders for committing 6,880 offences.
The Easter special patrol which held from March 31 to April 7, 2021, covered 1, 575 routes.
The Corps also recorded a total of 103 Road Traffic Crashes (RTC) as against a total of 200 in the same period in 2019 representing 14 per cent decrease.
The Corps Public Education Officer (CPEO), Assistant Corps Marshal (ACM), Bisi Kazeem, in a statement on Friday explained that the Corps also arraigned 87 offenders in mobile courts, convicted 79 with option of fines and sentenced one to prison, during the period under review.
He stated that the decrease recorded in road crashes was attributed to the establishment of Station Offices in almost all the 774 local governments in Nigeria.
He added that intensified public enlightenment and sensitisation campaigns were held nationwide in collaboration with key stakeholders in the transportation sector and beyond.
He also said the Corps carried out more effective patrol operations, when compared to the same period in 2019.
According to him, the effect of the massive sensitisation, enhanced visibility and general enforcement deployed in collaboration with stakeholders is evidenced in the recorded decrease in total number of road traffic crashes and offences recorded in 2021.
“It also implies that drivers have stepped up compliance with established traffic regulations.
“When comparing the two years, the same period in 2019, the Corps arrested a total of 6,961 offenders in 2019 as against 5,630 in 2021 representing 19.12 per cent decrease, and a total of 7,708 offences as against 6,880 in 2021 representing 10.74 per cent decrease.
“In the same vein, within the period under consideration, a total of 162 offenders were arraigned in mobile court in 2019, while a total of 87 offenders were arraigned in 2021 representing another decrease of 46.30 per cent,” he said.
The FRSC spokesman noted that out of the 103 road crashes in 2019, FRSC recorded 37 fatal crashes as against 26 in 2021, representing 30 per cent decrease in fatal crashes alone.
He said a record of 64 serious crashes occurred in 2019, against 69 in 2021 representing an increase of 7 per cent in serious crashes alone.
He also said a total of 14 minor crashes were recorded in 2019 against 13 in the same period in 2021, representing 7 per cent decrease.
He added that of the 578 persons involved in road traffic crashes during the 2021 Easter celebration, compared to 1,128 people in 2019, and that 33 of them were killed in 2021 compared to 80 in 2019.
Kazeem said a total of 175 vehicles were involved in road crashes in the review period compared to 218 in 2019.
He gave the breakdown of the vehicles involved in road traffic crashes across the nation as 15 tanker/trailers, 17 trucks, 28 buses, 57 cars, 45 motorcycles, six tricycles and seven pickups.
The CPEO quoted the Corps Marshal, FRSC, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, as saying that the Corps now has a wider coverage due to the establishment of more FRSC commands, outposts, road side clinics and Zebra points feeding in reports from different routes that were hitherto not thoroughly covered.
He stressed that the decrease in number of road crashes, the number of persons involved, as well as recorded decrease in the number of persons killed was due to enhanced visibility.
He urged the public to assist the Corps by reporting any form of obstruction or emergency on the road to the spokesperson through the FRSC Toll Free numbers 122 Or tune into the National Traffic Radio 107.1FM to report same or any other contravention seen on the road.
“The Station can also be reached through its Social Media Handles as follows: WHATSAPP 08052997848, FACEBOOK TRAFFICRADIO 1, TWITTER @TRAFFICRADIO 1, INSTAGRAM TRAFFICRADIO 1 or Call the following numbers: GLO 08052998090, MTN 09067000015, and SMS on GLO 08052998012 and the FRSC toll free emergency line 122.”