While We Await Better Trains In Lagos ;This Is What You Can Do To Be Safe On Board

So it was reported yesterday that hundreds of passengers escaped death on Thursday in Lagos when a mass transit shuttle train derailed at the Ashade railway crossing on the Agege-Ikeja corridor in Lagos.

The derailment happened when the Apapa-bound mass transit train skidded off its tracks at the Asade Railway Crossing at Agege, on the Ikeja Corridor. If you are informed about the activities of the railway system in Lagos you will agree with me that this is not the first time

such unfortunate incident has occurred; as a similar occurrence was reported in July last year leaving no fewer than three people dead.

some commuters prefer to take trains compared to commercial vehicles because it is way faster and relatively cheap, however, It is no longer news that some people are seen sitting atop and hanging on these trains while in transit, this act is reportedly simply done to evade payment of the service rendered.

While the above act is quite disturbing, members of the public, traders especially are also seen encroaching on the rail tracks while doing their business, thereby obstructing passage. Some people have also been killed on the tracks because they put on their earpiece and could not hear the train honk.

While we hope for the federal government’s intervention on the management of the railway system in Lagos by maintaining old trains and introducing new ones, we can also apply safety measures while we board these trains by deciding to sit inside the train and not on top or hang on it , the railway track is not a market space for trading, parking lots or walkways but if you must walk past the railways do not have your earpiece on so as to hear an incoming train honk. Disapprove carelessness.

The train conductors should also ensure that the trains are not misused and stop people from hiking; you can also discourage others from taking risks like these. Strict laws should be made and enforced to prosecute offenders. Let’s be sensitive and conscious of our environment.