Abstract

Transport is central to development that provide physical access to jobs, health, and education Moving people or goods from place to place must be undertaken safely. Consequently, Transport plays a vital role in the overall development process. It affords people with the mobility and accessibility that are essential for the achievement of nearly every aspect of social development and economic growth.

However, in Nigeria Railway and Inland waterways played significant but less important roles. The result of this chaotic situation is road traffic accident, which is a major but unfortunate feature of the road transport industry in Nigeria. The alarming increasing rate of the accidents in the country which as today has claimed more lives than death has become a national calamity. According to United Nation, the road traffic casualties will be the second most common cause of disability-adjusted life years in developing countries by the year 2020 if drastic measures is not being taken to reduce the current trends.

It is against this background that this paper seeks to examine how the provision of transportation infrastructure can be used as an institution mechanism for safety and poverty reduction.

Therefore, findings showed that Transportation safety is key to poverty reduction and the transfer of responsibility to the private sector should be accomplished through deregulation and open competition.

Finally, the Federal and State Government should allow the private sector provide infrastructure services to the maximum extent possible, with governments concentrating on planning, policy and regulation, and with the private sector on efficiently investing capital and improving the efficiency and quality of service to be provided.