The Nigeria of My Dreams

The Nigeria of My Dreams

BETTER Transportation in Nigeria by Jaida Roberts

The Nigeria of my dreams is a country where people can walk around without the fear of being kidnapped.  A Nigeria where we can leave our workplace by 5:00 pm without thinking of traffic.  A  Nigeria where we all work together as one nation. I, Jaida Roberts, am writing about a Nigeria with a better transportation system. Which, if put in place, will make our country’s aesthetics better by close to forty per cent.

I dream of a Nigeria where I wake up in the morning to the beautiful smell of flowers by the roadside as I drive to school. Where I can go for a morning jog and not worry about being hit by a careless driver or someone driving on the sidewalk because he or she is avoiding the potholes on the road. I foresee a Nigeria where I can drive to the airport without worrying about the plane’s fuel because I know proper provisions have been made. I dream of a Nigeria where I drive to a place in 5 minutes because of all the fly-over bridge on the roads. I dream of a Nigeria where I can use a speed train instead of a plane and get to my destination in record time. I FORESEE A NIGERIA OF MY DREAMS!

Transportation is the act of taking or carrying people from place to place by use of different means of conveyance like animals, cars, buses, trains, planes, boats etc. Many countries like America (USA) and England (UK) use different means of commuting but some places like Nigeria, use only two or three. This is because of the lack of things like coordination, maintenance, good roads, safety and many more. Nigeria has the capacity of having many more vehicles including rails. All we need are people willing to put it in place and ensure it is working.

There are many ways to make transportation better in Nigeria. For example, if there were good, accessible roads in Nigeria, cars and other fuel-dependent vehicles will get to their destination faster and safer. There are different ways to better transportation, like:

• Improving the state of roads
• Reducing the stress of vehicle importation
• Safety on the highways
• Underground trains
• Government mass transit schemes
• Make air travel more functional
• Develop the inland waterways
• Better train infrastructure and connection that goes around Nigeria
• Check corruption
• Explore other means of transportation

Some of the ways to fix transportation problems are easy to achieve, but some might take months or even years. Here are some that can be easily reached:

• Improving the State of Roads

A significant challenge to transportation in Nigeria is the state of our roads. Some federal ways are so painfully terrible that it can take twelve hours to drive from one state to the other when you can drive the same distance in five hours under normal conditions. To improve transportation, the government or a group of people must look into this matter and improve the conditions of roads to ease movement in the country through rehabilitation and where necessary, construction of new roads and lots of over-pass.

• More Trains should be made Available

It is an excellent thing in Nigeria that some of the railways in Nigeria are now functional. More of these railways need to be constructed and revamped, and more trains procured. This will significantly improve transportation because trains are relatively the cheapest means of commuting.

• Make Air Travel more Functional

The air transport system in Nigeria is a big mess. It is safer to travel by road than by air in Nigeria. This is why there is so much pressure on roads as most people go by cars, whether commercial or personal. The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) should look into making air transport safer and more affordable to enhance the movement of people, goods and services in the country for economic development to take place.

• Safety on Highways

Once upon a time in Nigeria, one could drive to any part of the country at any time, day or night. Alas! Those days are long gone. There are armed robbers on almost every highway in the country thus discouraging movement on those highways. The government can improve transportation by ensuring the safety of passengers and drivers on our highways. Anti-crime patrols should be stationed at strategic points regularly by security agencies to reduce the incidence of crime to allow free flow of traffic.

• Filling up Holes on the Road

Many holes on the road are the causes of most car crashes or accidents. A is due to the laziness of construction workers. If only they could finish up the roads, most of the car accidents we see on the news will not be heard of.

• Explore Other Means of Transportation

Most people in developed countries use other means of transportation, such as bicycles for short distances. However, in Nigeria, one is considered to be poor if he tries that, but this is not true. You could save some money just riding a bicycle within town instead of spending money on transportation, especially with this inflation. This will reduce traffic hold on the road and save time for commuters.

Transportation is an essential part of our economic development and should be taken seriously. It is a lucrative business and a very high source of revenue. Developing this sector will lead to the development of many other sectors, and so the government should make efforts to improve it so that the economy can grow into what we want it to be. This is just the start of the Nigeria of my Dreams.

Jaida Roberts is a ten-year-old pupil of Corona School Victoria Island. This piece is her submission for the Jordan Hill October 2019 Writing Challenge.