Merry Xmas and welcome to another episode of Roving Informant's dialogue. This time, we bring you the ordeal those who live in the Lekki Peninsula axis of Lagos state ( a very fast growing area with lots of estates) have to put up with every single working day, with the hope that even as the state government recently approved the construction of over-head bridge at the Ajah round-about to ease the traffic at that end...
...the construction of alternative routes at the beach road, and water ways will be considered and equally approved.
The setting is in an Ajah bound commuter bus, in the long traffic that stretches from Ikate to Igbo-Efon, at about 8pm on a working day. Passengers are tired from the hard day's work, compounded by the hectic traffic situations they had to go through every morning and evening at the Ikate - Igbo Efon axis and Ikota Bridge immediately after the 2nd toll-gate - Ajah round about.
Passenger 1 ( a middle aged woman apparently in her 40s): (Stares at a younger woman with a baby sitting next to her with concern, as the mother tries to console her wailing baby). Bring the baby let me... (the young woman obviously frustrated hands her the baby), She carries the baby from the mother and rocks her....(looks towards the window, and says to the mother) I think she is hot and tasty, please call water if you see any pass by.
Passenger 2 (A middle aged working class man in his mid 40s seated on the adjacent row of the coaster bus): If not for this hopeless traffic situation one have to go through, you might have gotten home by now....(looking at the crying baby) sorry my dear, we will soon get off this traffic.
Mother of baby: Hey-water...waterrr, (a young man runs to her side of the window with a crate of cold bottled water on his head, and hands her one). she grabs it, and 'Passenger 1' hands her a =N= 100 note.
Passenger 1: Please bring two...I am very thirsty too...thank you
Mother of baby: Ok Ma, thank you...(turning to the water seller) bring another one...cold oneooo
Water Seller: No wahala....here you go...(hands her another plastic of cold water and leaves to attend to other passengers from the bus who are tasty and calling on him)
Passenger 1: (Positions the baby well, takes a bottle of water from the baby's mother and slowly gives the child...the baby grabs the water with both tiny hands, as if her life depends on it,) easy dear...it is ok...I have enough water for both of us...(laughs) other passengers sitting nearby who had observed the scenario shakes their heads in sympathy... (She turns to the baby's mother)..You can have some from the plastic you are holding...the young mother opens the plastic she is holding and gulps...
Passenger 2: If not for poor planing....I mean how can each administration that comes simply ignore to construct alternative roads on to ease traffic on this very busy axis, not with all the residential estates coming up almost on a daily basis? (he asks no one in particular.
Passenger 3, another middle aged man in the bus: It all boils down to corruption niii, when they will be no toll-gate on alternative roads, how will they be serious with it's construction?
Signs emerge from almost every corner of the bus...
Passenger 4, a young woman, and a trader at Lagos Island popular market: Does that bother them, when they and their wives don't ply this route, to experience what we experience
Passenger 2: Even if they do, they go with sirens to clear the roads...
Passenger 1: As if their offices and various engagements they seem to always be in a rush to, is more important that ours...
Passenger 3: And these massive round-abouts.... what is it about their sizes? they contribute to the traffic, because when the three lane of cars gets to that point, a 'bottle-neck' is formed, causing a stall or very slow movements on those coming behind...
Passenger 2: Before you knew it, the traffic don long go reach the next round about.
Passenger 4: Every morning and evening nah so person go dey suffer, I even pity una wey dey do office work...my neighbor for our compound for Badore, nah 4am the lady dey wake up every day, and she no go reach house until between 9 to 10 pm...but nah 5pm them dey close for officeooo.
Passenger 3: That was why I refused my wife working for now...I know what I face every day....I practically live on the road...even the weekends is not enough, before you knew it, it is already Sunday evening...then you get ready for another 5-days of early waking and sleeping late..How I can I function optimally at work, or live long for my family, we just merely exist, this is not living?
Passenger 1: Come to this road by 5:30am every where don block..people go dey rush to reach V/I before 6am, otherwise nah around 10am you go take reach office...
Passenger 2: Yes nah...thanks goodness they finally saw reasons to construct a bridge over Ajah...but that is not enoughoooo, we still need alternative routes with street lights especially along the beach through to Ibeju Lekki...If not Epe. I mean what has this innocent child done to suffer like this in this traffic?
Every one chorused: Yesooo
Story and picture copyright: Oby Denis
