InFocus: Of safety concerns and Lagos enforcement of ban on okada, tricycles

*The Lagos State Government intensifies enforcement of ban on commercial motorcycles, also called Okada, and tricycles over alleged persistent disregard for road safety rules and route restrictions across the metropolis

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

In ensuring safety of lives and property of Lagosians, the Lagos State Government (LASG) has continued to enforce a statewide ban on motorcycles, otherwise known in local parlance as “Okada” and tricycles across the metropolis.

However, the enforcement efforts have not been without some brushes with the stakeholders, especially in the transport sector of the Lagos economy.

For several years, the Lagos State Government has engaged in a running battle with operators of commercial motorcycles, known as Okada over alleged persistent disregard for road safety rules and route restrictions.

Checks indicated that despite the authorities’ regular raids and seizures of the motorcycles for route violations, the ubiquitous Okada riders remain defiant.

In August 2025, for instance, the Lagos taskforce team seized 668 motorcycles and arrested seven suspects during a routine week-long enforcement for compliance operations.

Adetayo Akerele, Chairman of the taskforce, led the crackdown on traffic violators.

The enforcement of the ban specifically targeted Ishaga, Balogun Bus Stop on Iju-Ishaga Road, Ijegun Roundabout, Iyana-Iba, Iyana-Ishasi, Igbo-Elerin, and Iyana-School in Lagos State, according to report.

The team also raided Volkswagen Bus Stop on the stretch of Lagos-Badagry Expressway, Kola Bus Stop on the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, and other restricted routes.

Commenting on the operation, Akerele reportedly said that the affected areas had been flagged, following numerous complaints and distress calls indicating the persistent use of commercial motorcycles by suspected criminals to attack innocent citizens, tricycle operators, and their passengers, robbing them of valuables, particularly at night.

Besides robberies, Okada riders are notorious for disregarding traffic rules, often riding against traffic even on highways and ignoring traffic lights, sometimes resulting in avoidable accidents, The Punch report also said.

This development underlines the need to enforce a statewide ban on Okada to prevent further abuse, report stated.

The defiance has spread to operators of tricycles popularly known as Keke Marwa or Keke NAPEP.

This puts the lives of Lagosians at risk, and constitutes a serious threat to public safety and order.

It is recalled the clampdown began 2006 when the Lagos Government banned Okada operations between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m.

In 2012, former Governor Babatunde Fashola introduced the Lagos State Road Traffic Law.

The edict prohibits Okadas and tricycles on certain routes and restricts motorcycles with engine capacities below 200cc from major expressways in Lagos.

The law mandates a minimum 200cc engine for motorcycles for mail or courier services.

The state government reiterated the ban 2015 but was largely unsuccessful, report noted.

However, by 2017, the government added major highways and bridges to the list of restricted areas.

It established the Lagos State Transport Sector Reform Law 2018, which came into effect in February 2018.

Section 46 (1) of the law stipulates that “no person shall ride, drive or propel a motorcycle or tricycle on a major highway within the state, and any person in contravention of this provision commits an offence liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of three years with such motorcycle or tricycle forfeited to the State.”

The state government barred these transport operators from six Local Government Areas (LGAs), nine LCDAs, 10 major highways, 40 bridges and flyovers with effect from February 1, 2020.

Ride-hailing bikes were also added to the list when they became a nuisance, report said.

Against the backdrop of the situation regarding Okada and tricycle operations across the state, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has restated the ban from time to time.

This is also backed with regular enforcement raids by the state’s taskforce on environmental sanitation and special offences, as well as the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

Though the operations of these bikes and tricycles greatly aid transportation in the bustling metropolis, there is an overarching imperative for their activities to be strictly regulated and extended all over the state.

The requirement that riders and their passengers use helmets has been largely ignored as well.

It was gathered between 2016 and 2019, Lagos State recorded over 10,000 accidents involving Okadas and tricycles, resulting in over 600 deaths in the state fondly called the “Centre of Excellence”.

The National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, in Lagos, also set up an “okada ward” to handle cases arising from bike crashes, report noted.

Sustaining enforcement of ban against defaulters

It is emphasised that the Lagos State Government must provide more commercial buses, and other public transportation options to cater to the needs of commuters affected by such a ban, and reintegrate the riders and/or transport operators into the available alternatives.

There should be collaboration with the private sector to overhaul the transportation system and implement new data-driven decisions after due consultation with the public and other stakeholders.

Most importantly, the safety of lives and property in Lagos must remain the government’s highest priority.

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