The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has issued a final warning to commercial transport operators loading passengers along roadsides and operating from illegal motor parks, announcing an imminent enforcement drive to move all intercity and intra-city transport operations into newly constructed bus terminals.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, the Mandate Secretary of the FCT Transportation Secretariat, Mr Chinedum Elechi, said the administration was ready to enforce compliance to restore order, modernise public transportation and address security concerns, including ‘one chance’ robberies, drug trafficking and arms smuggling linked to unprofiled transport operators.
‘At the root of many security challenges is transportation.
‘The problem of ‘one chance’ and general insecurity will be half solved if we have a proper transportation system where operators are profiled and operate from designated terminals.
‘Under the new operational framework, long-distance intercity routes such as Kaduna, Aba, Lokoja, Owerri and Sokoto will operate strictly from designated terminals such as Mabushi and Kugbo. The Central Business District (CBD) terminal will handle intra-city routes, serving as a hub for taxis, e-hailing services and feeder buses,’ Elechi said.
He noted that, for the first time in the FCT’s 50-year history, the administration has built state-of-the-art bus terminals capable of handling more than 2,000 passengers.
According to him, the facilities include structured car parks, shopping outlets, food courts, escalators and cinemas, and will be managed under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement with Planet Projects.
Elechi added that discussions were ongoing with the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation to provide dedicated spaces within the CBD terminal for staff buses.
Addressing concerns over storm damage at the Kugbo terminal, he explained that the facility absorbed high-speed winds during a severe localised storm, thereby preventing major structural damage to nearby residential buildings.
He said structural modifications and roof repairs were nearing completion and that the terminal would soon become fully operational alongside the Mabushi and CBD terminals.
The secretariat warned that the previous practice of releasing impounded vehicles after operators signed undertakings would no longer continue.
Elechi noted that FCT transport regulations prohibit the operation of commercial motor parks in open spaces or on private premises without official authorisation.
‘We are not taking food from anyone’s table; we are asking operators to move from unsafe and unhealthy roadside locations into modern facilities built with billions of naira.
‘If you convert private premises into illegal motor parks, we will enforce the law, seal the premises and impound the vehicles.
‘The FCT must look like every modern capital city,’ he said.
The Transportation Secretariat also disclosed that efforts were ongoing to address intermittent traffic light failures caused by depleted solar batteries and faulty sensors. It urged residents to support the government’s anti-vandalism campaign by reporting the theft of traffic signalling cables and other power components.