Between January and November, 2012, excessive speed accounted for about 35pecent of crashes recorded in the country. Within the last seven months of 2013, speed violation, according to Osita Chidoka, Corps Marshal and Chief Executive of the Federal Road Safety Corps, accounted for about 65percent of the causative factors of road crashes and fatalities. Between January and June, 2013, a total of 1397 buses were involved in road traffic crashes killing 1437 and injuring 6831 persons. The report for 2012 and 2013also indicates that loss of control which is directly linked to speeding was equally a risk factor within the same period. Summed together, excessive speeding remains the biggest obstacle to the Corps 2013 goals of cutting down crashes by 20percent and fatalities by 30percent.In the words of the FRSC boss, the nation has suffered enough trauma from road carnage caused by drivers who get unnecessarily thrilled by speed… noting in his welcome address during the second stakeholders forum in Abuja,'' that speed governors are the most cost effective way of curtailing them''.
As part of efforts to initially address this in 2012,the Corps organised the first stakeholders meeting on speed limiting in December , resulting in the setting of a technical committee comprising relevant stakeholders such as the Nigerian Institute for Transport Technology,National Union of Road TransportWorkers,Nigerian Associat ions of Road Transport Owners, representatives of Nigerian Society of Engineers, National Automotive Council, Advocacy groups, Transport Secretariat of the Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria Police and the Directorate of Road Traffic Services, FCT. A sub technical committee with technical bias was further constituted with the following as members; Nigeria Society of Engineers, Nigeria Institute of Transport Technology, National Automotive Council, Standard Organisation of Nigeria, Commercial Banks, Nigeria Police, Directorate of Road Traffic Services, Nigeria Customs Service, Consultants and Engineer Zedomi,former Board Chairman of National Automotive Council. The sub-committee considered models from Kenya, Britain and Australia and came out with a Nigerian model. The draft document produced is presently with SON for consideration and approval. In the draft, the Corps shall be the authorised body to approve dealership on speed limiting device while other enforcement agencies are to synergise in enforcement to ensure total compliance.
As a build-up to the first stakeholders forum, an extensive second stakeholders forum was held again in Abuja on 4September, 2013. Between 9-13September, 2013, simultaneous platforms were held in all the 36States as part of measures to sensitise stakeholders and the public on the traffic implications of speed violation and the need for drivers to install speed limiting devices in their vehicles. Before I dwell on the outcomes of these deliberations, permit me to refresh you with the first stakeholder's forum after which I hope to run series of contributions by others.
To redress the burden of excessive speeding, the Corps held a one day stakeholders forum with Leon Du Plessis, an expert on vehicle speed limiting device from South Africa as guest speaker. Frank Nneji, Chief Executive Officer of ABC Transport whose safety philosophy in the transport sector with respect to speed remains a model was also in attendance.
The issue of speed has been identified by WHO as a key risk factor in road traffic injuries, influencing both the risk of a crash as well as the severity of the injuries that result from crashes .In fact WHO and the Global Road Safety Partnership in its publication speed Management; a Road Safety Manual for Decisions Makers and Practitioners,2008 recommended that speed limit be introduced in every country as part of the global strategy to cut down road fatalities.Osita Chidoka in his opening address noted that there is the need to intimate the public, drivers and fleet operators on the importance of sped limiting device in vehicles' as a means of achieving safe driving on our roads. He noted that by slowing down vehicles, the travel risk for all motorists may be lowered by reducing the number of collisions and mitigating the severity of those that do occur.
He equally referred to the provisions of the National Road Traffic Regulations, 2004, which specifies the speed limit allowed on our roads, citing that developed countries such as Canada, United States and Britain have since adopted the compulsory use of speed limiter/ governor as a means of eliminating speed related road crashes on their roads.
What is the relationship between speed and crash? Before I continue with this, please allow me share this expensive joke by the guest speaker. Said he, ''there are many jokes on the issue of speed but this one interest me; that at a speed of 120,God himself would get out of the vehicle for His own safety. However,at over the speed of 120,angels would get out while at about 160km/ph,even the devil would jump out of the vehicle. The pointlessness of speed was equally underscored by Frank Nneji who noted that, increase in speed gives you no advantage over your arrival but rather increases the risk of not arriving at all.
Excessive speeding is defined as exceeding the speed limit while inappropriate speed is defined as driving at a speed unsuitable for the prevailing road and traffic conditions. Excess and inappropriate speeds are responsible for a high proportion of the mortality and morbidity that result from road crashes.
•Agwu, a Corps Commander, is Corps Public Education Officer, Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC.
