BRT vehicle crushes motorcycle rider to death

There was apprehension at the Agric end of the Ikorodu Road, Lagos State on Thursday after a Bus Rapid Transit vehicle crushed a motorcyclist, Taiwo Adeleye, to death.

A crowd of angry motorcyclists, sympathisers threatened mayhem, but they were held back by the heavy presence of security personnel who swiftly responded to the emergency.

Policemen from the Owutu division, together with police officers from surrounding divisions, were supported by officials of the Rapid Response Squad and military officers to maintain the peace in the area.

A chopper belonging to the RRS also hovered around the scene to forestall a breakdown of law and order.

PUNCH Metro learnt that Adeleye had encroached on the BRT corridor while searching for a prospective passenger.

As the Oyo State indigene rode on the corridor, he reportedly crashed into an iron barricade and fell to the ground.

The back tyre of a speeding BRT vehicle was reported to have climbed on him, breaking his skull open. He died on the spot.

A witness, who asked not to be named, said the incident happened around 8am.

He said, “The motorcycle rider had just dropped a passenger and he rode into the park. He decided to go to the expressway, after he saw a would-be passenger.

“As he rode there, he stumbled and crashed against the barricade and fell. The BRT driver, who did not see him, just continued his movement and the bus crushed him to death.”

A security officer, however, told our correspondent that the victim did not stumble or crash against the barricade, adding that a jeep triggered the accident.

The officer said the speeding jeep had hit Adeleye’s motorcycle, adding that he fell to the ground before the BRT climbed on him and killed him.

“The jeep driver just sped off, without knowing what he had caused,” she said.

The road was said to have been splattered with the victim’s blood and brains.

The BRT driver, Oguntoyinbo Akinola, who later pulled over as his passengers took to their heels, was eventually arrested by the police.

Friends of the victim and motorcyclists in the area reportedly went on the rampage, attempting to vandalise other BRT vehicles.

But the security agencies were said to have stopped them.

To avert any crisis in the area, all the BRT buses plying the Ikorodu area were ordered to cease operation pending when the tension would die down.

A resident, Jamiu Ogunyemi, lauded the police for handling the situation well.

He said, “If not for the presence of the police, the hoodlums in this community would have caused a lot of damage. In fact, they were already mobilising, but because of the heavy presence of security agents, all they could do was to watch and wail from afar. The police were all over the place – air and land.”

The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, confirmed the incident.

She said, “A BRT bus killed a motorcycle rider at Agric bus stop at about 8.15am. The man’s name is Taiwo Ad eleye, an indigene of Oyo State. Other commercial riders rioted, but the command moved in quickly and restore normalcy.

“The corpse has been deposited at a mortuary in Ikorodu. The family of the victim has already been contacted and we are aware that they are in talks with the management of the BRT.”

The spokesperson for the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, owners of the BRT, Mr. Kolawole Ojelabi, said he was not aware of the incident.