As the Lagos State government and articulated vehicles owners engage in discussion over the take off of electronic call up system meant to manage access by tankers and trucks into and out of the Lekki-Epe corridor and Lekki Free Trade Zone, residents have called for a middle ground agreement between government and the drivers.

The Guardian gathered that many residents along the Lekki-Epe axis are apprehensive of the devastating gridlock that once paralysed the Apapa axis.

Though plans have been in the works for months, the e-call up system did not take off smoothly on Monday as expected.

But some concerned stakeholders, especially residents have insisted that all parties, including articulated vehicle owners, must work to ensure the successful and efficient take off of the electronic call up system.

The once chaotic congestion at Apapa ports access routes, where trucks spilled into streets and disrupted business and community life, serves as a cautionary tale for Lekki–Epe residents.

A resident, Tajudeen Abayomi, pleaded that the state government should not allow him to face what he experienced while living in satellite before moving to Ajah.

“For those of us who experienced the debacle along the Apapa-Oshodi expressway before it was resolved, we do not pray that the Lekki-Epe becomes the same. It is just too hellish. Therefore, everybody including the government should resolve their grievances to make commuting along the corridor smooth.”

Also speaking, Solomon Onyemachi stated that for about three years now, he has been apprehensive about the Ajah-Lekki corridor not being turned into what Apapa-Oshodi Expressway used to be.

“When I heard about the Dangote Refinery taking off and other businesses springing up within the Lekki Free Trade Zone, including the Lekki port, it was mixed feeling for me as a resident because of the impact, especially increased articulated vehicle activities on the corridor.

“So, I will beg the government, the drivers and their companies to please not let us residents and small business owners go through nemesis of accessing the Apapa ports before it was resolved. It took more than a decade to resolve. Therefore, it is better it is tackle now before some people starts seeing it as a cashcow with residents bearing brunt mostly.”

With the hiccups that followed the commencement of the e-call up, it was not surprising that the Lekki Estates Residents and Stakeholders Association (LERSA) issued a statement, warning against a plot to undermine the reintroduction of an electronic call-up system for tankers and articulated trucks along the Lekki-Epe Expressway.

LERSA, in a statement jointly signed by Sulyman Bello, president, and Yomi Benson, chairman communications committee, the residents were optimistic that the initiative would help promote sanity on the corridor.

The body maintained that unregulated trucking activities had made life unbearable for residents of the Lekki Peninsula, with children spending up to seven hours in traffic, routine accidents, environmental pollution, and massive economic losses becoming part of daily life.

“As representatives of residents and stakeholders of the Lekki Peninsula, it has to be emphasised that our children, wards, spouses and neighbours, as well as other stakeholders, are the ones at the receiving end of the current havoc that unregulated operation of trucks and tankers wreaks.

“For the avoidance of doubt, we are strongly opposed to any manifest or clandestine attempts to undermine, sabotage or otherwise frustrate this noble initiative, which is designed to keep residents of the Lekki Peninsula safe,” it stated.

Similarly, the Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Oluwaseun Osiyemi, said increase in the number of trucks plying the axis necessitated the introduction of e-call up system while emphasising the urgency of proactive traffic management measures.

“We currently have between 360 and 400 trucks operating in the corridor daily, but projections show that the number could rise significantly — with Dangote Refinery alone capable of dispatching 3,000 to 4,000 trucks once operations reach full capacity,” he noted.

He explained that the e-call up system is designed to prevent chaos on the roads by regulating truck movements using a structured scheduling framework stating that under the new regime, truck operators will be required to register online and upload their Authority to Load (ATL) documents.

But the articulated vehicle drivers though did not kick against the introduction of the e-call up system, but were not happy with the rate the state government and its agents wanted to charge to use the e-call up to access the Lekki-Epe corridor.

It was why the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) directed its members to halt the loading of trucks destined for the Lekki-Epe Corridor from June 16, 2025, in protest against the N12,500 e-call-up system fee by the state government.

In a memo by its National President, Billy Gillis-Harry, and the National Secretary, Adedibu Aderibigbe, PETROAN kicked against the fee as insensitive and far above the N2,500 per truck charge earlier proposed by industry stakeholders.

The association stated that its proposed amount was more realistic in light of prevailing economic challenges.

It added that despite several engagements with the state government and other authorities, no agreement was reached, prompting the decision to suspend activities along the corridor until a “mutually agreeable resolution” is secured. It, however, called off the strike a day after to allow for negotiations.