The Lagos state government has cancelled its deal with the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) to operate a Bus Rapid Transit scheme between Mile 12 and CMS area of the state.
The Punch reports that Dr. Dayo Mobereola, the commissioner for transportation in Lagos said on Thursday, January 7 said the inability of NURTW to comply with some operational plans was the reason for the termination of the franchise agreement as stipulated in the franchise by the First BRT Cooperative.
“The termination of the franchise agreement with the operator is sequel to breaches of the BRT Service Level Agreement (SLA) it signed with the state government. We have been talking with FBC for years to ensure the SLA was adhered to, all to no avail.
“Though the SLA requires a one-month notice prior to its termination, the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, custodian of the agreement, gave a three-month notice, which the operator failed to honour.”
He said it was evident that the NURTW could not operate good transport services on the BRT platform and that this decision has been communicated to the operators.
“This has led to incessant complaints by members of the public over poor services provided by the operator and the deployment of vehicles not safe for use.
“The failure of the FBC to comply with the terms of the franchise agreement has led to passengers experiencing poor service quality typified by extensive waiting time and having to endure use of dilapidated and unsafe buses.”
He added that it was in the interest of the people that the decision was taken as the operators failed to correct their mistakes even after notifications.
The NURTW however wrote to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode asking him to intervene as more than 1,000 persons would lose their jobs.
The letter signed by Mr. Tajudeen Agbede, the chairman of the transportation union said the union would find it difficult to fulfill a N1.6bn loan agreement it entered into with Ecobank in 2014 to facilitate the purchase of 100 buses for the scheme
Part of the letter read:: “Sir, we are pleading for your understanding on this situation. We are ready to work with other operators on that corridor for the benefit of Lagos commuters.”
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