The Road Safety Paradox: How Do Lagos Danfo Buses Obtain Road Worthiness Certificates?

 

A critical safety initiative requiring every vehicle registered in Lagos to obtain an annual roadworthiness certificate aims to drastically reduce accidents and vehicle breakdowns on the city's bustling roads. The certificate mandates that vehicles undergo thorough testing of essential components, including horns, brakes, indicator lights, headlights, windscreens, mirrors, tires, emission levels, fire extinguishers, and other safety equipment. This proactive measure promises safer roads, fewer vehicle failures, and an overall improvement in Lagos’s transport system.

Yet, despite this seemingly robust framework, the question remains: Are commercial buses—particularly the iconic yellow danfos, koropes, and other commercial vehicles—subject to these rigorous inspections? Observations and inquiries raise serious doubts about the enforcement of this critical safety policy.

Visits to major Lagos Computerised Vehicle Inspection Centres located in Ojodu, Oshodi, and Ojota revealed an unexpected pattern. Over several hours at each location, commercial buses such as danfos and koropes were conspicuously absent. These vehicles, notorious for their poor maintenance and often unsafe conditions, seemed to avoid the inspection process entirely. Conversations with other motorists at these centers confirmed that they too had never witnessed commercial buses undergoing the mandatory roadworthiness tests.

This glaring absence raises several urgent questions: Are commercial buses exempt from the stringent safety tests applied to other vehicles? If not, where and when do these commercial vehicles undergo their inspections? The apparent evasion of the system by these buses is puzzling, given the widespread presence of visibly defective danfos and koropes on Lagos roads.

Despite the regulatory framework, danfos without side mirrors, indicator lights, or brake lights remain a common sight. Broken windscreens and other mechanical faults continue to characterize many of these vehicles, posing grave dangers to passengers, pedestrians, and other road users. This contradiction points to a significant enforcement gap that undermines the entire roadworthiness certification scheme.

The persistence of these defective commercial buses has serious implications. It not only endangers lives but also erodes public confidence in the authorities’ ability to regulate road safety effectively. The question then shifts from "if" these vehicles are inspected to "why" such inspections are seemingly non-existent or ineffective. Is there an underlying issue of lax enforcement, or worse, a collusion that allows unfit commercial buses to evade critical safety checks?

Authorities responsible for Lagos's road safety and vehicle inspection have a crucial role to play in addressing this discrepancy. Without a transparent and enforceable system for commercial buses, the annual roadworthiness certification risks becoming a mere formality for these vehicles, instead of a vital safeguard.

Addressing this challenge requires more than periodic inspections; it demands consistent enforcement, public awareness campaigns, and perhaps restructuring how inspections for commercial vehicles are conducted. One possible solution might be creating specialized inspection windows or facilities tailored to handle the volume and operational patterns of commercial buses, ensuring no vehicle is exempt or overlooked.

Ultimately, the responsibility lies with the Lagos State government, the Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA), and the Lagos State Vehicle Inspection Service (VIS) to bridge this enforcement gap. It is imperative they take decisive action to curb the proliferation of unsafe commercial buses that currently plague the city’s roads.

Without a firm commitment to fully implement and enforce the roadworthiness certification process across all vehicle categories, Lagos’s roads will continue to be dominated by risky commercial vehicles. This not only endangers lives but also undermines the very essence of the certification program aimed at making Lagos roads safer for everyone. The question remains: Who will fix this problem before more lives are lost?