The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has disclosed that the electronic call up system for trucks at the Lagos Port will commence in August this year.
Briefing journalists at the end of the Presidential task team on decongestion of roads leading to Apapa ports’ working visit to the ports access roads, the Traffic Manager, Lagos Port Complex and member of the Task Team; Mr. Victor Ogini assured that by August this year the electronic call-up system will begin, thereby putting an end to the manual call up system that is already in place.
He acknowledged that the manual call-up currently in use is a temporary measure, and that efforts are already on to ensure that the electronic process of calling trucks into the port becomes operational soon
”What we have now is the manual call up system, but it’s a temporary one, the ultimate is the electronic call up system which we are taking seriously.
"Already, it is undergoing procurement process as we have said before and will be deployed in August this year", he said.
Has also added that the said the NPA has received several notifications from shipping companies showing interest in receiving their empty containers in their holding bays from where they would now convey them to the ports following the achievements recorded on the Apapa port access roads by the Presidential Task Team in the last two weeks.
“This was not possible, but they have seen this window of opportunity. In fact, on my way here, I have received another application from a bonded terminal, showing interest that, look, with this window of opportunity, they want to start moving. The end benefit of this is that all these individuals returning empty containers that you see, they will no longer be heading towards the port, they will rather go to shipping companies empty container holding bays.
“This is the goal that government wants to achieve because, in all developed areas of the world, individuals do not return empty containers to the port, it is the shipping companies that will now collate these empties and have a scheduled return to the port to meet the ship that is at berth.
With this, my belief is that you won’t see all this gridlock again. So, this is one of the achievements of this task team, restoring law and order. Once law and order is restored, everybody will queue behind it and things will go as scheduled and planned.
Buttressing the position of the NPA on the electronic call up system the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), Mr Hassan Bello said the procedures and processes will help in easing the traffic congestion.
"The call up system, manual at first will be decided in a week or so time, whereby trucks are called only when they are needed, so that not everybody will rush to Apapa and from there we migrate to electronic call up system
"Already, some terminals have their own call up system. So, we have to latch on such programme, this simplification of procedures and processes will help in easing the traffic congestion.
“We have holding bays, we have the trailer parks, they are going to be available. The Lillypond has already started; courtesy of NPA and this will of course militate against the traffic overflow on roads leading to and from the port. We have also private parks, Shippers’ Council has been able to identify about 54 of them, some will be put to use and once we have combination of all these, then , you will see that we will have sanity on the road”.
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