Gridlock at Lagos/Ibadan Expressway
By Ike Megbu, Ikeja
Some road users have appealed to the Federal Government to adopt more measures to reduce gridlock as contractors returned to site after the festive season to resume construction works on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
Work on the OPIC axis, which resulted in traffic snarl-ups and hardship to road users in the area, was suspended in December for the festive season to ease the movement of travellers, bringing relief to motorists.
Last Thursday, workmen showed up on Section One of the highway between Kara and OPIC on the Lagos-bound side. They were using earth-moving equipment to scarify some portions while at the same time laying fresh construction materials on other sections.
Mr Osas Idohasa, a commercial bus driver who plies the Ikeja-Ojodu and Wawa-Arepo routes, commended the quick resumption of works but appealed for urgent measures against gridlock as well as speedy completion of the project.
Idohasa said he would henceforth study the traffic situation before conveying passengers on the Wawa-Arepo axis of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to minimise loss of revenue and man-hours. “How much do I make daily that I will allow myself to sit inside traffic?” he queried.
Mr Tirimisiu Adigun, a commercial motorcycle operator who plies Beger-Arepo, appealed for the construction of alternative routes to ease congestion, to make the highway safer.
He said the government was passionate about completing both section one, which spans Ojota in Lagos State to Sagamu Interchange, and Section two, which spans Sagamu Interchange to Ojoo in Ibadan, on schedule in the first quarter of 2023.
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