Fatal crash: LASTMA nab fleeing driver after crushing cyclist to death

2026-02-09 - 13:08

By Olasunkanmi Akoni Officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, on Monday, apprehended a truck driver after crushing a cyclist beneath the LASUTH Bridge at the traffic signal corridor inward Airport Road, Ikeja. The unfortunate incident involved a DAF articulated truck and an unsuspecting cyclist. According to eyewitnesses, the tragic episode happened as both the cyclist and the heavy-duty truck advancing from the Maryland axis simultaneously attempted to negotiate the roundabout underneath the bridge. In the course of this convergence, the cyclist, apparently unable to maintain a safe clearance from the moving truck, was crushed to death in the process. LASTMA operatives who were actively deployed to regulate and control vehicular movement at the location responded immediately and cleared the impediment. Their prompt and decisive action culminated in the immediate apprehension of the truck driver, who had attempted to abscond from the scene to evade culpability. The suspect was thereafter handed over to security personnel from the Ikeja Police Division for thorough investigation and prosecution in line with extant laws. In order to avert secondary accidents and swiftly restore traffic normalcy, officials of the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit (SHEMU) were urgently summoned to evacuate the remains of the deceased cyclist from the carriageway, thereby ensuring public safety and operational orderliness at the scene. The Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Sola Giwa, expressed deep sorrow over the needless and irreplaceable loss of life while extending his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family. Giwa, therefore, issued a firm caution to cyclists and commercial motorbike riders, admonishing them to exercise heightened circumspection and to place utmost priority on their personal safety while navigating Lagos roads. He reiterated that cyclists must strictly comply with traffic regulations and refrain from plying expressways, highways, and other major arterial routes where their exposure to danger is considerably amplified. According to Giwa, “The Lagos State Government has over time, sustained intensive sensitisation initiatives through public jingles and documentary campaigns aimed at enlightening cyclists and other vulnerable road users on the necessity of confining their movements to inner roads, away from highways and high-risk corridors. “This safety directive equally applies to skateboard users and other non-motorised conveyances.” He reaffirmed the state government’s unwavering commitment to rigorous road safety enforcement, sustained public enlightenment and the protection of all categories of road users, while urging motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians to conduct themselves responsibly and strictly within the confines of traffic laws in order to forestall avoidable tragedies.