Skip to main content

IBM advises Lagos on future transportation system to aid growth

A team of IBM experts completing a month-long pro bono consulting assignment has presented recommendations to Nigeria's Lagos State Government to ensure that private traffic and public transportation flows more efficiently in Africa's most populous city, Lagos. Working with the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority and the Lagos State Ministries of Transportation, Works and Infrastructure, Science and Technology, the IBM team of experts proposed technology-driven strategies to make travel easier.
June 17, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
A team of 62 IBM experts completing a month-long pro bono consulting assignment has presented recommendations to Nigeria's Lagos State Government to ensure that private traffic and public transportation flows more efficiently in Africa's most populous city, Lagos.

Working with the 7133 Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority and the Lagos State Ministries of Transportation, Works and Infrastructure, Science and Technology, the IBM team of experts proposed technology-driven strategies to make travel easier.

The recommendations included better coordination between agencies responsible for traffic management, police, fire and medical care to provide more accurate and up-to-date information to help transport management agencies better manage the city's traffic flow.

Also on the list of suggestions was a single, integrated e-ticketing system for all modes of transportation, similar to New York City's Metro Card or London's Oyster card system, and integrated fare management. The introduction of roadway toll rates based on traffic density was proposed to encourage the use of public transportation. The state was also advised to create a single platform for all its traffic and transportation-related data so each agency and mode of transport is integrated, helping passengers interconnect seamlessly.

Lagos State Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola said: "The need to deploy innovative approaches that address civic challenges in Lagos State has never been greater. Technology is the key to the future, and we welcome IBM's support in this regard."

The team's recommendations took advantage of existing infrastructure, and suggested ways that projects could be self-funded.

"IBM's set of recommendations address our key transportation challenges and clearly enhance our ongoing efforts to fix the myriad of issues faced by our fast developing state," said Kayode Opeifa, Lagos State commissioner for transport. Further confirming this point of view, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, Lagos state commissioner for works and infrastructure, said the state's "blueprint for transforming our struggling infrastructure into a modern ecosystem driven by data intelligence and efficient resource management has been further authenticated by these set of recommendations from IBM."

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • US enforcement regulation to deliver clearer guidelines?
    February 2, 2012
    Jim Tuton of American Traffic Solutions looks at the evolution of automated enforcement in North America "Technological regulation will become more sophisticated at the federal level, giving states clearer guidelines" Jim Tuton In just 20 years, photo enforcement in North America has grown from a single speed camera in a small town in Arizona to thousands of photo traffic enforcement cameras which are now operating in 350 communities spread across 27 states and three Canadian provinces. Most of these p
  • DDOT releases new Capital Bikeshare locations
    December 24, 2012
    Washington’s District Department of Transportation (DDOT) has announced proposed locations for fifty-four new Capital Bikeshare (CaBi) stations to be installed this winter in the District of Columbia. The list includes proposed new stations in all eight wards of the city. DDOT selected the locations from a longer list of suggested locations submitted by the public over the past two years. DDOT evaluated the locations using several criteria, including population density, employment density, bike-to-work rate
  • Tokyo tops 'future-ready' city list
    November 16, 2022
    Thinktank ThoughtLab released research during Smart City Expo World Congress 2022
  • US closer to finalising a new reauthorisation bill
    January 25, 2012
    Pete Goldin talks with ITS America about the continuing efforts of US Congress to finalise a transportation reauthorisation bill and how this will impact the ITS industry