Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority
The Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) is the Lagos State Government agency created to coordinate transport planning, policies, and public transport infrastructure implementation in the Lagos Metropolitan Area, Nigeria. The organisation oversees wide range of transport planning and implementation of transport strategies and plans in Lagos, as well as the Lagos Rail Mass Transit and the Lagos Bus Rapid Transit System. It is based in Ikeja. The bill setting up the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) was signed into law on 13 January 2002 by the then Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (1999 – 2007). The law empowered LAMATA with the responsibility of reforming the transport system in Lagos. Background The United Nations defined Lagos as the only mega city yet to have an organized public transportation. The population is highly mobile and largely reliant upon public transport however the lack of formally organized public transport has led to gross inefficiencies in its provision and a low level of service to those forced to use it. Public transport in Lagos has been widely described as chaotic, inefficient, expensive, low quality and dangerous both in terms of road traffic accidents and personal safety. Transformation of the