Petroleum Tanker, Container Trucks Drivers May Clash Over Use Of Apapa Expressway

There are indications that maritime truck drivers and petroleum tanker drivers may clash over the movement restrictions slammed on the truck drivers last week Monday by the Lagos State Government, a development that has seen the drivers taking over the Apapa Oshodi expressway with their trucks.
Sipping Position Daily confirmed last week that the tanker drivers are getting agitated and are not happy that maritime trucks are hindering the tanker drivers from accessing the tank farms in their bid to load petroleum products.

There are indications that maritime truck drivers and petroleum tanker drivers may clash over the movement restrictions slammed on the truck drivers last week Monday by the Lagos State Government, a development that has seen the drivers taking over the Apapa Oshodi expressway with their trucks.
Sipping Position Daily confirmed last week that the tanker drivers are getting agitated and are not happy that maritime trucks are hindering the tanker drivers from accessing the tank farms in their bid to load petroleum products.
Some of the tanker drivers who spoke with our correspondent last week warned that container laden trucks have no right to block the expressway, thereby disturbing activities of other road users.
Zonal Publicity Secretary of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD); an arm of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG); Comrade Tayo Boyeji told our correspondent that the traffic law of the Lagos State Government has stated it categorically that tankers are exempted from any restrictions.
“I heard that they (truck drivers) said they are withdrawing their services, if this is true, is it the express roads that they now want to park their containers? Anyway, that is their problem”
“Provided it does not affect tankers, the traffic law says, all long vehicles, trailers, articulated vehicles and so on are not to move between the hours of 6am and 9am ‘except petroleum tankers’ as far as it does not affect tankers, we are not bothered” Boyeji stated.
 But some aggrieved truck drivers who spoke with Shipping Position Daily last week lamented that it was wrong for the Lagos Government to exempt tankers from the law. The truck drivers maintained that the exemption of fuel tankers from the restriction order indicates that most of the fuel tankers belong to those in power.
“They value tanker drivers more than us, now let them begin to cook with their fuel, they exempted tanker drivers as if, and once the fuel is available we don’t need anything else” one of them stated.
However, a petroleum marketer; Fidel Aisodioune cautioned the truck drivers to seek interpretation of a Federal High Court on the implementation of the laws.
Fidel said that at the moment, trailer drivers should maintain one lane leading to Tin Can Island Port while tanker drivers maintain one single lane.
 “There should be no interference, tankers actually ply federal roads; Ibafon, Ojota, Oworoshoki, Oshodi Apapa, Ikorodu, Anthony and so on. These are roads that terminate at the port and are used by tanker drivers. If they are banning trailers from Lagos State owned roads, there should be an interpretation from the Federal High Court” he argued.