Business
SOME commercial drivers in Enugu metropolis are yet to comply with the state government’s directive on a number of passengers in their vehicles at a time.
A News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondent, who monitored the situation on Monday, observed that the commercial drivers had not reduced the number of passengers in spite of a government directive.
NAN reports that tricycles, minibusses and 14-seater buses plying the Agbani Road-Old park route and the Agbani-Holy-Ghost route were fully loaded with passengers.
The minibusses still had seven passengers as against government directive of four while the tricycles had four passengers as against two.
Some of the drivers, who spoke to NAN, said that the inability of passengers to pay higher fares was responsible for their reluctance to comply with the directive.
A driver, Mr. Emma Eze-okoli, said there must be an increase in transport fare to enable compliance.
Eze-Okoli added that most of the passengers were not paying for the empty seats as they complained of the cash crunch.
Mr. Francis Egwu, a tricycle rider, said he could not adhere to the government directive as he was of the belief that the coronavirus could not have been the reason for the directive.
A commercial bus driver, Mr. Friday Aku, who plies Amaechi-New Market route, said he only adhered to the directive after 7 a.m.
“I load my bus as usual from 5:30 to 7 a.m; once it is 7 a.m, I begin to comply with the directive by loading seven passengers as against 14,” Aku said.
A passenger, Mrs. Grace Ozor, however, lamented that most commercial drivers in Enugu were disobeying the government directive.
“Enugu commercial drivers are stubborn; they cannot obey simple instructions that will benefit everyone.
” It is about life and not money, yet they are still loading many passengers,” Ozor said. (NAN)
– Mar. 30, 2020 @ 11:39 GMT |
Tags: COVID-19: Commercial drivers in Enugu yet to comply with directive on passengers
