Challenges Of Transportation In PH

Port Harcourt, the capital city of Rivers State, is one of the fastest growing cities in Nigeria like any other modern capital city in the world. The city is gradually becoming cosmopolitan, as it continues to play host to many people across the country. This is expected,  considering the serene and accommodating nature of the city, coupled with its social facilities.

The aesthetic feature of Port Harcourt, ranging from its road network, structural layout and, of course, its horticulture which earned it the sobriquet “Garden City” are incomparable to many Nigerian cities.

Port Harcourt has good street lightings, high rise buildings, recreation parks, shopping mauls, among others. The city is also characterised by few highways and many street roads.

Observers note that while some affluent residents of the city move about in posh and exotic cars, others go about in chauffeur-driven official cars, limousines and jeeps.

Ironically, however, a larger segment of Port Harcourt residents move about in very rickety commuter vehicles where passengers are crammed like the popular sardine. Others find their way by trekking long distances to their destinations.

“Movement in Port Harcourt is difficult and has become a big problem. With car owners, it is the problem of traffic hold-up. Commuters face a compounded problem of dearth of  decent commercial vehicles to move about in”, says a civil servant in Port Harcourt, Mr. Mike Benebo.

Observers, however, note that the population distribution in the different neighbourhoods of Port Harcourt largely determines the type of transportation problems associated with such areas.

Present-day Port Harcourt City is constituted by Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor Local Government Areas, with the Ikwerres as the predominant settlers.

While it is true that many residents and workers live within the city, it is also a fact that a larger proportion of the workers and settlers live in settlements within the Obio/Akpor Local Government Area which are no known as Port Harcourt City. And workers particularly the civil servants among them have to pay their way to the State Secretariat for work.

Some residents of Port Harcourt told The Tide that they encounter difficulties while going to their various places of work. Some of them attribute their sad experience to inadequate transportation vehicles plying their routes.

“I live at Rukpoku. It is very difficult to get transport vehicle to Rumuola where I have my shop. I pity workers in particular because many of them who should be at their work places at 8.00 a.m. remain on the roadside waiting for transport vehicles. Sometimes they wait up to 9.00 a.m. or even 10.00 a.m. before boarding vehicles”, says a shop owner in Port Harcourt, Ms Catherine Iwunda.

Another trader, Mrs. Godwina Iloh who resides at Rumukrushi but runs a fruit stall at Mile One Market, says transportation difficulties in Port Harcourt stalls business activities. She says adequate number of vehicles needs to be on the carter for the transportation needs of commuters in Port Harcourt.

“The Rivers State Government should accelerate its plan to ease the transport problems facing Port Harcourt residents. Following the ban on “Okada”, I thought government would invest heavily on transport as a short term measure. But that was not the case. Rather, the few vehicles government purchased in partnership with Skye Bank are gradually disappearing from the road”, declares Iloh.

Some observers bemoan the prevailing high transportation cost in the city and ask the state authorities to intervene urgently. They note that it is hard for people to commute during rainy season. At such periods, transporters hike fares and sometimes commercial vehicles are unavailable.

“The chaotic transport situation in Port Harcourt worsens during rainy days, as commuters spend unduly long hours waiting to get transport vehicles, while the fares are often increased arbitrarily”, says Jemina Erekeosima, an applicant.

He says that the commuter vehicles in Port Harcourt are not enough to meet residents’ transport needs, while some of the available ones are dilapidated.

Erekeosima says that the problems are compounded by the fact that most government agencies no longer run staff buses which could have abated the difficulties experienced by commuters.

In spite of apparent policies of government on transportation which has translated into the designation and building of motor parks, the establishment of TIMARIV and the ongoing  Monorail Project handled by TSI Property and Investments Holdings Limited, some Port Harcourt residents think the government does not do enough to ease the transport problems in the state capital.

They point to bad roads, shabbily executed construction work that pays little or no attention to the convenience of motorists, unnecessary traffic hold-up and inadequate road network as some of the reasons for the transportation problems witnessed in the state capital. They lament the unpalatable situation and claim that they spend so much of their salaries on transport.

“I spend between N500 and N600 on transportation each day and if I have to eat as I want, I will end up without savings at the end of the month”, says the Manager of Evangelical Bookshop and Business Centre in Port Harcourt, Mr. Theophilus Ekezie.

Sharing similar sentiments, a student of Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt, Ferdinand Kuro, likens the transportation problems in Port Harcourt to those of Lagos and Abuja. He, however, absolved the state government of total blame. He says the ugly trend can be particularly attributed to the growing indiscipline on our roads by motorists.

The complaints are numerous and appear well-grounded, as observers insist that tangible efforts be made to overhaul Port Harcourt transportation system and make it more responsible to the residents’ needs.

Arnold Alalibo