The Federal Road Safety Corps [FRSC] says it is fine-tuning plans to re-introduce psychiatric test for commercial drivers across the country, as part of concrete measures to stem road traffic crashes in Nigeria.
Corps Marshal and Chief Executive of FRSC, Boboye Oyeyemi, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja, while addressing newsmen during the technical session on the implementation of speed limiters in Nigeria.
Oyeyemi explained that the Corps would soon meet with other stakeholders on the conduct of the psychiatric test on commercial drivers, adding that the psychiatric test on commercial drivers has become imperative to restore sanity on the roads.
He warned that the test would be compulsory for all commercial drivers across the country, noting it would be one of the pre-requisites for the issuance of drivers’ licences to them.
It would be recalled that the immediate past Corps Marshal of FRSC, Osita Chidoka, tried to introduce psychiatric test for commercial drivers during his tenure, but it was greeted with controversies at its formative stage.
Commenting on the implementation of the speed limiters, the FRSC boss also explained that a technical committee made up of the representatives of National Automotive Council, Standards Organisation of Nigeria, Nigerian Society of Engineers, and the academia from tertiary institutions, has been constituted to review the modalities for the implementation of the speed limiters as well as work out specifications, standards and compatibility of the device in Nigeria.
Oyeyemi stressed the need to reduce over-speed through the installation of speed limiters, adding that over-speed constitutes over 50 per cent of the cause of crashes in Nigeria.
According to him, “The roads are getting better. We need something to pin down the drivers to save more lives on the roads.
“With the introduction of speed limiters, we will be able to adopt a model that will give the nation full benefit of the safety impact that is desired.
“This impact is in slowing down vehicles to improve road safety by reducing the number of collisions and mitigating severity which usually result in deaths and maiming of motorists and thereby, depriving families of loved ones and exponentially enabling fuller lives for all citizens and economic growth for the nation.”
Also speaking, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of ABC Transport Plc, Frank Nneji, commended the FRSC’s initiative of the introduction of speed limiters, adding that his transport company had introduced the use of the device since 2010.
Nneji said as a result of the installation of the speed limiters that the company has recorded 90 per cent success in road traffic crashes’ reduction.
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