Apapa Port Congestion & Gridlock – A tale of the Past?

For years, the Apapa Port axis was a dreaded route due to the gridlock caused by trucks and the poor road access. In our last article, we reported that the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) was developing an electronic call-up system that would be used to manage truck movements to and from the Lagos Ports (The Lagos Port Complex and Tin Can Island Port).

The Electronic call-up system; Eto, kicked off on Sunday, February 28, 2021 and residents of Apapa, importers, clearing agents and truck owners are more than elated with the recent developments. The reports have all been positive stating that the Apapa axis is clear of truck congestion and movement is free on the port access road.

The Vice Chairman, National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Dry Cargo section, Alhaji Abdullahi Inuwa, said the call-up system would end artificial bottlenecks on the port access roads. However, the National Vice President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Kayode Farinto, said unless the port access roads were fixed it might not yet be achieved.

According to the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala Usman, the Electronic Call-up system removes the avenue for extortion possibilities and rent-seeking.

According to the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Apapa traffic menace will soon be history. He stated that the government would continue to monitor and enforce these new changes so that they would not find themselves back at square one.

We applaud the Government for its efforts on bringing an end to the Port congestion at the Apapa axis.