Tips On How To Avoid Lagos Traffic

The worst thing that can happen to a person on a Monday morning, in addition to the stressful deadlines at work, has to be getting stuck on a road for over four hours.

Lagos, the economic capital of Nigeria, is popularly known for its beautiful buildings, rude and obnoxious residents, and most importantly, terrible road traffic.

Motorist queue to buy fuel in short supply resulting in traffic gridlock following the discovery of contaminated fuel in supply in filling stations across the country, especially in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial hub on February 9, 2022. – Fuel queues has emerged in Nigeria’s major cities blamed on unsafe quantity of methanol in petrol imported into the country and resulting in traffic gridlock in different parts of the state as people engage in panic buying of petrol to stockpile the product. (Photo by PIUS UTOMI EKPEI / AFP)

To a certain extent, you would agree with us that when it comes to describing the traffic situation in Lagos, words are not enough to fully express how terrible it is.

Terrible road traffic ruins our entire day, frequently causing us to shift or cancel those important appointments, work extra hours to make up for the wasted time, and deal with drivers who blare their horns like their lives depend on it.

Though we know Lagos and bad road traffic are like 5 and 6, there is no reason for you to go through the awful experience. Here are four ways to avoid being in such a situation.

Wake up early

In Lagos, an unpopular and paraphrased saying goes, “early to bed, early to rise, makes a Lagosian not get stuck in traffic.”

An average Lagosian wakes up by 5:00am, prepares for the day, and jumps on a vehicle to his/her destination. So, you have to beat this average Lagosian by waking up earlier; something around 4 am.

Waking up earlier reduces the chances of getting stuck in traffic because there are fewer vehicles on the road.

Simply put, waking up early allows you to be among the first group of people on the road, leading to a timely arrival at your destination.

Google maps

Technology makes life easier, and with the introduction of a popular application called Google Maps, road traffic is slowly becoming an issue of the past.

If you are a car owner, this would be the best opportunity to tap into. With your smartphone, you get to know the roads in Lagos that are experiencing traffic and the quickest routes that would lead to your destination. All these things can be done from the comfort of your home.

Shortcuts

In addition to Google Maps, if you want to navigate through Lagos traffic, just have a family member or friend who happens to know everywhere in Lagos.

For example, sometimes when you are with your dad or a friend, they serve as a Google map, telling you what route to take.

However, what do you do in a situation when they are not with you or you are in a public vehicle? Simple; for the latter, call them. And for the latter, secretly pray your bus driver isn’t a JJC to Lagos roads.

Motorbikes (Okada)

Since its introduction, motorbikes have been saving the time of many Lagosians. This probably explains why there is an influx of motorbike riders every year.

With a portable body frame, bikes can easily move through the roads even when there is traffic. This makes Lagosians come to understand that if you want to get somewhere on time, a bike is the best way to do so.