A new report released by a leading maritime consulting firm has said that more than half of the container trucks visiting Apapa, Lagos, daily have no immediate business to transact at the port.
The report, which stems from an independent study conducted by Ships & Ports and a don of the Lagos Business School, Dr. Frank Ojadi, also stated that truckers that genuinely had business to do in the Apapa Port spent an average turnaround time of two days.
“Two points were selected-the start of Creek Road at the tip of Liverpool Bridge and the start of Wharf Road near Area B-to collect information on trucks coming into Apapa.
“It was observed that 44 per cent of the containers coming into the Apapa community through these access points were intended for transactions in Apapa Port, while 56 per cent do not involve any form of transaction in the port.
“The data gathered was analysed to show the time and frequency taken from sighting to entry into the port,” the report stated.
A total of 5,515 trucks were surveyed at both observation points over a period of two weeks.
The report stated that the prolonged closure of the Ijora Bridge, which is the main exit point from Apapa, for repairs, is a major contributor to the perennial traffic congestion in the area.
“The Ijora Bridge is the main exit point from Apapa, but it was closed to repairs. 20 days were communicated for the repairs, but it is stll closed more than 30 days after.
“The Federal Operations Unit of the Nigeria Customs Service also set up a checkpoint for container-laden trucks along the same road stretch during the day,” the report said.
The report also found that there is no presence of a traffic management system to coordinate the affairs of the multiple government agencies responsible for traffic control in Apapa.
“The collapse of the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, which is the major entry and exit point for trucks accessing the Tin Can Island Port, the Apapa Port and several tank farms in the area, has led to an increased number of trucks accessing these facilities through the narrow Apapa-Wharf Road, thereby compounding the congestion on this stretch of the road,” the report further stated.
Various stakeholders interviewed in the course of the study believe that the solution to the Apapa gridlock is to compel shipping lines to receive all empties at their empty depots.
The report, however, disagrees stating that “While the popular notion on the return of empty containers has no direct impact on port operations, the study supports the assumption that it may compound the Apapa gridlock.
“This is because more than 80 percent of truckers perform dual transactions i.e. drop off empties and pick up imports. This implies that the return of empty containers to depots will add more trucks to the road when they have to return the empties to the terminal,” the report said.
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