#INFRASTRUCTURE - DATA DELIVERS

Data has assumed a new dimension in business, academia, politics, and indeed, he who has data rules. Enterprises' success is now contingent on the scale of data it has. Data merchants can influence the outcomes of elections and governments on a scale never experienced before. From micro to megaprojects – data will continue to define winners and losers, as the business landscape continues to evolve. Infrastructure involves the commitment of large-scale resources. Data is essential: project sponsors use data to screen projects. Project managers use data to compare project progress with standards, thereby ensuring performance is within budgeted resources.

Source: Internet (2019)

Road Transport Data: According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Q1 Report (2018), 223,107 drivers' licenses were produced within a population estimate of over 198 million. Total registered vehicles are 11.7 million - comprising commercial vehicles of 6.8m (58.1%), private vehicles 4.7m (40.7%), government vehicles 139 (1.3%), and diplomatic vehicles 5.9 (0.05%). The breakdown of crashes is as follows - commercial crashes were 60.1%; private crashes 38.3%; the government was 1.4%, and diplomatic was 0.05%. The number of persons involved in the road transport crashes was 661 fatal, 1,232 dangerous, and 296 minor. The number of injuries was 7,848, those killed were 1,220, and the causality was 9,068. It seems these figures are those within NBS radar, as a data-gathering mechanism is poor and expensive in developing countries.

The 93-page report broke down the causative factors of accidents as follows - speed violation caused 1,261, phone 8, tire burst 205, mechanical fault 82, brake 131, over-speeding 39, dangerous overtaking 28, worn-out tyres 200, dangerous driving 209, bad roads 38, route violation 114, road obstruction 55, sleeping 23, alcohol 11 and poor weather 3.71% of the injured persons were male and 21% female and 8% minors. 72% of the persons killed were males, while 19% female, respectively.

Furthermore, the number of drivers’ licenses produced in the first quarter is - Lagos 25.6%, FCT 10.4%, Rivers 4.9%, Katsina 0.6%, and Kebbi 0.18%. The aggregation of data from different silos such as primary and secondary school enrollments, registered births, deaths, phones, workforce, and other indices suitable for predicting a more accurate population figure.

What do these accomplished facts mean to urban planners, transport experts, project sponsors, and investors? In today's world, no meaning development can take place without accurate data. Data analytics has become a key variable in a strategic canvas for Infrastructure development and management. Using data analytics within Transport Infrastructure Projects (TIP), corridor increases accurate delivery predictability.

Conclusively, it is hard to fight against the use of data in the short-term, but extremely difficult in the long run. Those who embrace data analytics win big, while those ignore it, struggle with failure. It is time to commence the aggregation of data-packets across Nigeria (school enrollment, phones registrations, births and death registrations, Nigeria Immigration Services, Hospitals and local markets) for the national population. It is tempting to posit Population census is easy to conduct with technology.