The Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DRTS) in the FCT will no longer register dispatch riders over their non-compliance to traffic rules and regulations in the territory.
The Head of Public Relations and Enlightenment of the service, Mr Kalu Emetu, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.
“We have been having series of engagements with the riders for them to see reason to obey traffic rules and regulations but to no avail.
“This is what informed our resolve to stop further registration. 2,500 of them have been cleared to operate within the FCT so far.
“The Public Transport Mass Scheme, the unit in the DRTS that is responsible for regulating their activities have been engaging the operators and the owners, but that had so far yielded very little result’’, Emetu said.
He explained that since some of the riders were registered through their companies and there is need for the companies to help caution them to desist from going contrary to the rules.
“So, based on all these worrisome activities especially riding against traffic, speeding and reckless riding, we decided to stop further registration to contend with the activities of the operators headlong.
“We have also come to realise that registering more of them would constitute more public nuisance’, he said.
Emetu said that so far many of the riders have been arrested and their motorcycle dumped at Wuye office of the service, but yet so many are not deterred on reckless and non-adherent misconduct on the roads, `he said.
He said that the service was considering restricting them to particular routes to check their menace especially within the city centre.
“For instance, those that based or reside in Gwagwalada axis will only be allowed to operate between Lugbe and Gwagwalada, while those in Kubwa axis will only operate between Zuba and the city centre’, he said.
He expressed optimism that when the new modalities come on board, it would no doubt checkmate the worrisome activities of the riders especially in the city centre.
