78 died in road crashes in Christmas week' FRSC

About 78 people died in various road accidents across the country between December 20 and Christmas Day, the Federal Road Safety Corps has said.The Corps Marshal, Mr. Osita Chidoka, said this on Monday while answering questions from reporters on the Niger Bridge at Onitsha, Anambra State.Though he said the details of the road crashes were being compiled, Chidoka noted that the figure was slightly lower than that of 2010.Chidoka said, The road crashes are relatively under control. From the 20th to 25th, about 78 people dead in road crashes, which was sa little less than what we had last year.And we are hoping that if Nigerians will continue to use the roads wisely and respect the traffic rules, we will have far less fatalities than we had last year, he said.The corps marshal said his men were able to effectively manage the situation on the Onitsha Bridge.Chidoka said,Traffic is orderly on the Niger Bridge. We have been able to manage it for the past four days. It has been very heavy traffic.But our men are on the ground and have been managing it. But I want to assure Nigerians that we are committed to this until after the Christmas and New Year celebrations.He said traffic on Nigerian roads generally had been heavier than in previous years.We are conducting a traffic count now so that at the end of the season, we should be able to compare it with previous years, Chidoka added.According to him, the inter-agency collaboration with the police, the army, Federal Road Maintenance Agency and the civil defence works very well and helps to manage the traffic during the season.Chidoka said commercial drivers were still the corps greatest headache.We want to improve the knowledge of drivers on Nigerian roads. We see a lot of ignorance particularly among commercial drivers. So we are looking in the next one year to improve their knowledge base, he said.The corps marshal distributed enlightenment flyers on the bridge to drivers crossing from Asaba, Delta State to Onitsha in Anambra State.
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