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Senate orders Fashola to remove speed bumps on federal highways

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Buhari Leaving Nigeria Better Than When He Took Over - Fashola

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has on Tuesday been directed by the Senate to remove all speed bumps on the federal highways in the country.

This is sequel to a motion sponsored by Senators Barnabas Gemade (APC, Benue) and Stella Oduah (PDP, Anambra).

The Senate also told the minister to mandate owners of petrol filling stations to construct a service lane of not less than 50meteres on both sides of their stations to stop their customers from directly turining to and from the highways.

While moving the motion, Gemade displeasingly pointed out the thousands of speed bumps recently erected on most federal highways across the country, to control speed of motor vehicles plying the roads.

READ ALSO: Senate debates scrapping Post-UTME exam

Supporting the motion, Joshua Moltobok, from Gombe, noted that if such bumps “must be erected, they should be done professionally.”

He added that “Most of these bumps are erected at short distances creating problems for motorists. Heavy-duty trucks find it hard to manoeuvre on these roads and this causes accidents. If there is a need to install these road bumps, it must be done professionally and at reasonable intervals.”

Speaking against the motion, Godswill Akpabio, PDP-Akwa Ibom, and Ike Ekweremadu, PDP-Enugu warned against the complete removal of the speed bumps.

“We cannot totally eradicate speed bumps because of highly congested communities and schools on the highways. In this case, there is a need for control. Where we need to have bumps, there is a need to have signs like ‘one kilometre ahead’ so as to reduce accidents,” Akpabio noted.

After the hot debate, the Senate directed the ministry to remove all speed bumps indiscriminately erected off federal highways nationwide and to regulate and standardise erection where speed bumps must be located.