TIMARIV Boss Lists Challenges Of Traffic Management

The Controller-General of Rivers State Road Traffic Management Authority (TIMARIV), Dr. Nelson Jaja, has said that absence of public parking lots and car parks are some of the infrastructural challenges facing the outfit in the state.

Jaja made this assertion during a public forum on transport held at the Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt recently according to him, bad roads and road maintenance culture also poses a great challenge to the smooth operations of TIMARIV, and called for adequate road markings and signage.

He also noted that absence of traffic lights and non-functional traffic lights are some of the impediments confronting their operations and appealed to the government for pedestrian over head bridges.

The TIMARIV boss in Rivers State also noted that over 30 per cent of vehicles on our roads are non road worthy, adding that over 50 per cent of trailers and heavy duty vehicles are also non road worthy in Rivers State.

Dr. Jaja, however, called for effective and structured vehicular road worthiness testing procedures and process in the state.

He noted that the some of the challenges were because about 85 per cent of drivers licences were bought for N5,000 or less, 93 per cent of drivers did not attended any formal drivers training school before obtaining their drivers licence, stressing that the illiteracy levels of motorists on Nigerians roads  is one of the largest in Africa.

The TIMARIV boss however, called for increased information, communications and education of motorists through radio, television adverts  Jingles, Poster, Newspaper adverts, handbills, fliers, corporate communication as well as catch them young programmes targeted at school pupils and students on traffic regulations.

Collins Barasimeye