On Sunday, the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority reiterated that the travel cowry card is still the sole form of payment that is accepted for use on all state-owned transportation networks.
In a Lagos interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, Mr. Kolawole Ojelabi, the Managing Director of LAMATA, stated as much.
This is in response to commuter complaints that certain small shuttle buses only accept cash payments and won’t let passengers use their cowry cards to tap in.
According to Ojelabi, in order for the government to identify gaps in the services it offers, feedback is essential.
“When you see a thing like that, just snap the bus and send it to me, the only way for us to know is to have information and we call the drivers in and we’ll deal with them.
“The whole essence of putting the monitor there is for you to use your cowry card. Those people collecting money are cutting corners. So, please send us the numbers of the buses.
“Also, about passengers having to tap in another BRT bus because the tap device of the bus to their destination is not working is something I consider strange. This is our number, 09099526282,we need this feedbacks,” he said.
Several locals spoke with Newsmen separately about their experiences.
Some minibus drivers who serviced Costain, Shitta, and Lawanson, according to businesswoman Mrs. Busayo Bolarinwa, were known to engage in this conduct.
“I top up my cowry card monthly to serve me for the month, so, it’s always annoying when some drivers ask for cash.
“In some cases, the driver will insist you tap in from another bus and then come back to enter the bus, so, I believe that some of their tap-in devices are faulty which should be fixed,” she said.
Similarly, a sales representative, Mr Dozie Anayo, said: “I was heading to Ikeja under the bridge to get to Egbeda, it was late that day and I couldn’t get a direct bus to Egbeda. I was surprised when the driver said we should pay in cash.
“I know there was no way that money I paid got to the state government. So, imagine if I didn’t have any cash on me. My friend said he had experienced the same too on minibuses.”
“I think once it’s late in the evening they believe they have worked for the government during the day and evening delivery was theirs.
“My experience was at the bus terminal at Marina. I boarded Eko Hotel shuttle minibus from there, I brought out my card but I was told to pay in cash,” as stated by Mr. Idris Olabisi.
