Investigating Vehicle (Fire) Accidents on Nigeria’s Highway, A Case Study of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

Authors

This study examined the causes of fire accidents traceable to petrol

engine along Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Nigeria. Road accidents

had taken away so many lives in Nigeria that hardly can any disease

match its mortality rate. A questionnaire was developed and

distributed to passengers, commercial and private motorists that

transit on Lagos- Ibadan expressway often. A survey research

design was used and the population of the study comprised of 315

passengers, private and commercial motorists. The sample was

made up of 78 passengers, 65 private motorists and 100 commercial

motorists obtained through stratified random sampling technique. A

Structured Questionnaire was used as instrument for data

collection. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the

research questions, while the null hypotheses were analyzed using

z-test at 0.05. The findings of the study revealed that most of the

drivers are not formally trained to drive on the highway, 55.7% of

the driver completed the training for driving on the highway while

44.3% did not. Even when the cause of vehicle (fire) accident is

traceable to mechanical factor, carelessness of the driver in form of

negligence, that is, ability to check and maintain the vehicle at the

appropriate time increases the risk of vehicle (fire) accident

exponentially, which could have been avoided. The enforcement

agencies need to update their rules and regulation in a way to help

reduce fire accidents traceable to petrol engine along Lagos-Ibadan

Expressway