Operational Efficiency of Public Transport System in Kwara State, Nigeria

The paper examines the operations of Public Transport in Nigeria using the Kwara State Transport Service as a case study. Public transportation service in Nigeria is provided by both the public and private operators. While the public Corporations are established by governments, private service operations are uncoordinated and poorly organized. Due to the inability of transport operators to solve the mobility needs of Nigerians, the Federal Government established the Federal Urban Mass Transit Programme in 1988 to ameliorate the transport situation in Nigeria. Through this programme, State Transport Corporations were established and assisted with buses and training in order to actualize the objectives of the programme. The study used data collected from passengers, through questionnaire administration, to determine users’ views on the services provided by the Kwara State Transport Service. Data were also collected from records of the Transport Corporation relating to passenger traffic, bus fleet and types, fare charged and organizational structure to assess the operations of the orporation. Results of the study revealed that operations of government owned Transport Corporations are defective in service delivery and reliability. Also, multiplicity of vehicle types usually affects vehicle maintenance. However, government owned Transport Corporation services are better patronized by travellers because of the comparatively lower fares charged in comparison with private operators. The paper recommends that in order to make the public transport service in Nigeria esponsive to the mobility needs of the people, improvements are needed in the operations of government transport organizations. Such improvements are in the areas of bus types, route selection and vehicle maintenance. Further, there should be encouragement of private operators through government financial assistance. Key Words: Operational Efficiency, Public Transport, Transport System, Kwara Stat

The structure of intra-urban road network development in Ilorin, Nigeria

(Global Journal of Social Sciences: 2002 1(1): 75-86

Modal choice for journey to work in Ilorin, Nigeria

The study examined the modal choice for the journey to work in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria with a view to discern the pattern. Journey to work when unidirectional leads to a high congestion problem. This creates a great concern for urban transport planners. Most of the movements made in cities are dominated by journey to and from work leading to congestion problems in the two peak periods of morning and evening. Thus a study of modal choice of the people for journeys to work places is necessary in order to proffer workable solution to urban transport problems. The study used data collected from the traditional wards in the city through the administration of 640 questionnaires in a home interview survey using systematic sampling procedure. The study found that the journey to work in Ilorin were distributed between taxi cabs (37.5%); private cars (30.2%); motorcycles (13.6%) while trekking, public bus services and staff buses provided 18.7%.. Multiple regression method was then used to determine the pattern of journey to work in Ilorin. The results showed that the form of transport and the time taken for journey to work are significant variables in the explanation of journey to work pattern in Ilorin. The study recommended that in order to ease the transportation problem of the inhabitants of Ilorin, intra-urban mass transit services should be provided.Keywords: Transport Modes, Mass Transit, Modal Choice, Private Transport, Public Transpor

Assessment of Parking Demand in the Central Business District of Lahore

With the increase in motorization, parking problems have become a major issue particularly in urban areas. Lahore is the second most populated city in Pakistan and it is expanding haphazardly. According to the Lahore Urban Transport Master Plan, trip generation would increase up to 48% from the year 2010 to 2030. Road occupation by parking is found to be 25–50%, where there is a commercial activity in Lahore. The increase in traffic volume leads to serious parking problems; hence more parking spaces are required in the city. Currently, it is essential to estimate the parking demand and statistics for the better development of parking facilities. The focus of this study is to calculate the parking statistics for the selected locations in the Central Business District (CBD) of Lahore