Dare Babalola
The Lagos State Government over the weekend impounded over 10 heavy-duty trucks for violating statutory access restrictions on the Third Mainland Bridge.
The development was made public in a statement by Adebayo Taofiq the Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) on Sunday.
According to Taofiq, the inaugural operation was carried out over the weekend as part of the government’s efforts to pursue public safety, infrastructural preservation, and adherence to extant traffic ordinances.
Taofiq quoted the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Sola Giwa, to have confirmed the operation.
Giwa underscored the administration’s unwavering determination to uphold regulatory sanctity, safeguard critical infrastructure, and protect the motoring public from avoidable hazards.
The SA said, “This intervention follows a sustained period of stakeholder engagement, public sensitization, and issuance of formal advisories reiterating the proscription of articulated vehicles above 9 tones from traversing the Third Mainland Bridge—a structure of strategic urban significance that has recently undergone major rehabilitation. Despite these precautionary overtures, certain recalcitrant operators have continued to flout these directives, thereby endangering both human lives and the structural integrity of the bridge.
“The Third Mainland Bridge is categorically excluded from the list of permissible routes for some articulated vehicles. This restriction is clearly enshrined in the law, and non-compliance will be met with decisive sanctions. Officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) have begun a full-scale enforcement operation, and defaulters will be apprehended and penalized without exemption.”
In addition, Giwa revealed that the bridge serving as a principal arterial link between the Lagos Mainland and the Island’s commercial nerve centres — has now been augmented with cutting-edge surveillance infrastructure, including precision-engineered, high-definition speed enforcement cameras to monitor vehicular compliance, detect infractions in real time, and deter errant behaviour.
“The deployment of these technologically advanced monitoring tools is a critical component of the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration’s broader strategy to entrench road safety, prevent structural fatigue, and engender responsible driving behaviour—particularly on high-risk corridors such as this bridge,” he noted.
The Special Adviser added “Pursuant to prevailing traffic statutes and regulatory frameworks promulgated by the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation, the movement of articulated trucks and similar heavy vehicular platforms across select bridges—especially during peak operational hours—remains expressly prohibited. This policy is aimed at averting structural overstrain, minimizing accident potential, and alleviating traffic bottlenecks”.
Giwa emphasized that the enforcement initiative was not punitive in nature, but a methodical, lawful response calibrated to protect the common good, extend the functional lifespan of public infrastructure, and promote seamless traffic flow across the metropolis.
He issued a stern admonition to stakeholders within the logistics and freight sectors including fleet operators and articulated vehicle owners to comply unequivocally with the designated traffic matrix and legally prescribed operational corridors, warning that any continued infraction, whether by ignorance or wilful defiance, will attract the full weight of legal reprisal.
