The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIOs) have been asked to apply stringent measures against unlicensed tanker and trailer drivers in the country.

The call, which was made by the House of Representatives, followed the adoption of a motion by Ben Igbakpa (PDP-Delta) at Tuesday’s plenary in Abuja.

Speaking on the motion, Mr Igbakpa said that there was the need to assess the vehicle licensing process in the country as many of the drivers were not licensed and lacked the requisite skills to drive thus resulting in fatal accidents.

He said that the FRSC, state VIOs and the Board of Internal Revenue (BIR) of states were agencies responsible for vehicle licensing.

He said that driving articulated vehicles required special skills and knowledge of traffic laws and regulations, adding that many drivers of articulated vehicles were not qualified to operate them.

Mr Igbakpa said that minimum safety requirements demanded that operators of the articulated vehicles conform to road transport safety standardisation scheme and registration of companies.

He said that all tankers, tractors and trailers and any other form of an articulated vehicle, including those conveying dangerous goods, were required to comply with the guidelines on safe operations.

According to him, the Lagos State University (LASU) and the Nigeria Institute of Transport Technology (NITT) have accredited curriculum that will be used for the training.

“Certification of the training team to train drivers of articulated vehicles is also important,” he said.

He stressed that most tanker drivers are young adults who can neither speak nor write in English, adding that when issued licenses, they endanger other road users, contrary to the FRSC registration.

He said that the registration process mandated tanker, tractor and trailer transport services and operators to register their transport companies with the FRSC.

Mr Igbakpa said that the proliferation of uncertified driving schools issuing driving certificates to untrained drivers often resulted in inexperienced drivers thereby causing accidents.

The House, therefore, urged FRSC to compel tanker-tractor–trailer transport services or operators to disclose the type of heavy-duty vehicle they were engaged in and register with the FRSC.

It also urged FRSC to stipulate stringent administrative procedures for tanker-trailer operations in the country for first-time articulated vehicle operators and applicants for FRSC registration.