The Federal Government has announced that the construction work on Lagos Ibadan expressway will be completed by April 30 while the second Niger bridge should be fully open to traffic by May 15.
The Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola made the announcement on Tuesday while inspecting and confirming the completion of the Loko-Oweto bridge and link roads between Benue and Nasarawa States.
Concerning the second Niger bridge and the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Fashola said: “On the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, the date we have now, and once again, I want to appeal first to commuters on that road for their continuous patience, forbearance and understanding – it is a difficult project to execute because it is perhaps one of the busiest roads in the country.
“Building through 40,000 vehicular traffic daily is not an easy undertaking, we can’t shut down the road. So, we have to also manage and divert traffic for the safety of those who are involved in the construction.
“So, I want to implore that forbearance continues because the headline date we have for completion now is the 30th of April this month. So, in barely about four weeks, 26 days, plus or minus, that road should also be fully completed, open to traffic from Lagos to Ibadan, and beyond the toll gate up to kilometer 116. That will be done by the 30th of April.
“What will be left is 9 kilometers, from kilometers 17 to 27. And the reason why that will be left is that the Oyo state government is constructing drainage across the road, and we have decided that we need the drainage because it will help address the issue of excessive flooding and climate change in Oyo state.
“But we believe that it is better to wait for them to finish that project, and then complete the remaining 9 kilometers, instead of building it now and then having them cut it up again. So, just 9 kilometers outside Ibadan is what will be left. But by the 30th of April, your end-to-end, from Lagos tollgate to the Ibadan tollgate, the road should be open on the 30th of April for traffic.
“Yesterday, we had a periodic meeting in the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President where the contractors, our team, all reviewed the challenges (on the second Niger bridge) and how to solve them.
The link road (of the second Niger bridge) that we formally opened to traffic, the date we have now is the 15th of May, as of yesterday. We are rolling out all the steps to support the contractor to see that that date is achieved.
“A lot of snag resolutions are going to start; lane marking on the bridge will soon start and erection of signages will also soon start. Just about two weeks before the end of the term, the President will be invited to the completion, and maybe any day thereafter, he will be able to fly in and do the ceremony. But by the 15th of May, the bridge should be fully open to traffic.”
