FRSC Deploys 30,000 Personnel Nationwide for Eid El-Kabir Traffic Operations
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has deployed 30,000 personnel across the country to ensure safer roads, smooth vehicular movement and prompt emergency response ahead of the Eid El-Kabir celebrations.
The corps said the nationwide special patrol operation, involving regular and special marshals, began on Monday and will end on May 31.
In a statement issued in Abuja by the Corps Public Education Officer, Mr Osondu Ohaeri, the FRSC said the operation forms part of its annual strategy to reduce road crashes, fatalities, traffic congestion and other highway emergencies usually associated with increased travel during festive periods.
According to Ohaeri, the exercise is aimed at guaranteeing free flow of traffic, effective management of black spots and swift rescue operations on major highways nationwide.
He said the corps had deployed patrol vehicles, ambulances, tow trucks, motorcycles, radar guns, breathalysers and other traffic control equipment to strategic locations for efficient operations.
The FRSC spokesman added that all Zonal Commanding Officers, Sector Commanders and Unit Commanders had been directed to maintain aggressive visibility patrols and ensure full coverage of identified routes throughout the operation.
He said the patrol teams would focus on traffic offences linked to fatal crashes, including speeding, dangerous driving, wrongful overtaking, lane indiscipline and overloading.
Other offences targeted include use of mobile phones while driving, operation of mechanically defective vehicles, use of expired or worn-out tyres and violations involving passenger manifests.
Ohaeri further disclosed that mobile courts would operate nationwide for speedy prosecution of traffic offenders and improved compliance with road safety regulations.
He said emergency response and rescue teams had also been placed on maximum alert to respond swiftly to distress situations, while patrol activities would run round-the-clock on shift basis.
According to him, night rescue teams have been stationed at designated operational commands nationwide.
The FRSC identified major traffic-prone corridors for intensive patrol to include the Abuja–Kaduna–Kano route, Akwanga–Lafia–Makurdi road, Kaduna–Saminaka–Jos highway, Ibadan–Ogere–Sagamu road and the Sagamu–Mowe–Lagos expressway.
Other routes listed are the Makurdi–Otukpo–9th Mile corridor, Asaba–Abraka–Ughelli–Warri axis and the Okene–Ogori–Owo route.
Ohaeri said the corps would collaborate with the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), military formations and emergency medical service providers to strengthen traffic management and emergency response during the festive season.
He urged motorists to obey traffic regulations, avoid speeding, dangerous overtaking, drunk driving and night journeys, while encouraging road users to use the FRSC toll-free emergency number 122 and National Traffic Radio 107.1FM to report crashes and traffic emergencies.
The Corps Marshal, Mr Shehu Mohammed, reassured Nigerians of the corps’ readiness to ensure safer roads and wished Muslim faithful a peaceful and crash-free Eid El-Kabir celebration.
