Citing the use of rickety buses among other violations, Lagos State government yesterday ordered operators of the first BRT Cooperative, owned by the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Lagos State Council, to vacate the Mile 12 to CMS Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor.
 
The quit order, which takes immediate effect, was in response to the operators’ persistent breach of the BRT operations Service Level Agreement (SLA) it signed with the State government. Though the Service Level Agreement also requires a one-month notice prior to its termination, the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), custodian of the agreement, had given a three-month notice, which the operator failed to honour.
 
Government’s decision, which was communicated to the operator yesterday, was premised on the inability of the operators to offer good public transport services to commuters on the all-important BRT corridor. Commissioner for Transportation, Dr. Dayo Mobereola, said the development had led to incessant complaints by members of the public over poor services provided by the operator and the deployment of vehicles not safe for use by the commuting public.
 
At a meeting with the NURTW leadership in the state, Mobereola said government’s decision to terminate the existing franchise agreement was based on non-compliance of the 1st BRT cooperative with operational plans as stipulated in the franchise agreement signed.
 
He noted that the state government also frowned at the non-operations of stipulated frequency schedules and operations of buses at below 50 per cent fleet capacity contrary to the agreement.

The Chairman of the Lagos NURTW, Tajudeen Agbede, in his reaction, said that the union had received the vacate order and would take all necessary action in due course.