By Oluyinka Onigbinde
After months of tension, negotiations, and back-and-forth over pricing, all appears set for the long-awaited enforcement of the electronic call-up system for trucks and tankers accessing Lagos Free Trade Zone (LFTZ) via the Lekki-Epe corridor.
The enforcement, which is expected to commence on August 1, 2025, comes after all stakeholders — including tanker drivers, truckers, park operators, and terminal operators agreed to terms following series of meetings facilitated by relevant authorities in the Lekki Free Trade Zone.
A source who is involved in the rollout of the e-call-up system confirmed to Shipping Position Daily under anonymity, that a 10-day pilot phase will begin on July 20, which will serve as a soft entry into the full implementation of the project. During this window, stakeholders are encouraged to go to designated parks and do their bookings at no cost, without enforcement or penalties.
He confirmed that, “all the parties have agreed to terms — tanker drivers, truck drivers, park managers, and the terminals within the free trade zone”. “There’s a 10-day pilot phase before full enforcement begins on August 1. From July 20, they will begin going to the parks and doing their bookings for free. There will be no enforcement until August 1, when full enforcement and payment begins”, he added.
According to him, the once-contentious N12,500 booking fee — a major reason for the previous deadlock — has now been reviewed downward, paving the way for industry-wide buy-in. However, he was cautious not to disclose the exact figure, noting that it should be officially announced by the Lagos State Government.
“All of them (stakeholders) have now bought into the idea,” the source revealed. “We’ve agreed, and they’re all onboarding. The only issue before was pricing, and that has now been resolved. It would be better for Lagos State to officially communicate the new price”, he stated.
Training and onboarding are currently ongoing, with members of NARTO, NUPENG, IPMAN, MOMAN, and DAPMAN all represented and actively participating. The official confirmed that the terminals within the zone have started uploading the “Authority to Load” documents for trucks expected to pick up cargo.
“We are training NARTO members, PTD members and other transporters. All the terminals have started uploading documents. Compliance has been impressive. We will be able to measure actual compliance after August 1, but for now, there’s good faith and everyone is registering.”
He added that no group is resisting the process anymore. “There’s no stakeholder that is hell-bent on not joining. Everyone is on board now. The earlier resistance was strictly on cost. Now that the fee has been reviewed, the resistance has vanished.”
Also speaking with our correspondent on the development, the Deputy Chief Operating Officer of Lekki Port, Mr. Daniel Odibe, expressed optimism about the impact of the new system and the implementation. He described the current traffic inefficiencies as limiting, stating that truck drivers are barely able to complete a single trip in a day — a challenge he believes the e-call-up system will resolve.
“With the way things are now, no truck driver can do more than one trip a day,” Odibe said. “But with this traffic management system, if implemented correctly, they can actually do two trips a day and generate more revenue. We are fully in support of the system, and we cannot wait for it to start. We hope it really begins August 1st.”
Shipping Position Daily also spoke with tanker drivers on the ground at the Lekki Free Trade Zone, many of whom confirmed their readiness and willingness to comply with the system once enforcement begins.
One of the drivers, Mr. Hassan Lawal, said, “We have been coming to the park to check how things are going. They said we should come in and do bookings for free now until August 1. That’s good. Before, we didn’t agree because of the money, but now they say the money has been reduced. We are ready.”
Another driver, Mr. Samuel Edet, applauded the introduction of the system, describing it as a “welcome development” that could bring sanity to truck movement within the port corridor. “If this system will help us move faster and avoid wasting the whole day on the road, then I support it. Sometimes we spend 12 hours for one trip. If this works, we will be happy.”
Recall that the Lekki corridor has in recent months faced the risk of degenerating into the kind of gridlock crisis seen around Apapa and Tin Can Ports in Lagos, with indiscriminate truck movements and lack of control threatening the smooth operations of the deep seaport.
The new e-call-up platform, designed to mirror and improve upon the controversial Truck Transit Park (TTP) model used in Apapa, is expected to introduce order and digital transparency to truck movements by mandating pre-scheduled bookings, park use, and confirmation of loading rights before trucks enter the port access roads.
