Modupe Gbadeyanka
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has said not less than 200 buses will begin operations on the 13.68 kilometre-long Oshodi-Abule Egba BRT corridor when completed in May 2020.
Mr Sanwo-Olu made this disclosure when he inspected ongoing construction of BRT corridor on Sunday, where he said the first phase will have 14 bus stations between Abule Egba and Oshodi, with five of the stations bilateral, facing both sides of expressway and nine medium stations. He said also, streetlight facilities will be installed on the route in addition to pedestrian bridges being built along the path.
He said upon completion, the project is expected to bring relief to residents, as it is expected to ease transportation challenges along the route, promising that additional buses would be delivered based on assessment of traffic situation and utilisation.
“This BRT corridor was conceived with the intention to address congestion and transportation challenges along the Oshodi-Abule Egba corridor. We are fully back on this project and we are pushing the contractor to step up the pace of work on it. Once it starts operation, this will significantly bring relief and reduce traffic congestion and transportation problems along this route.
“We are hoping that by the end of May, we should complete the entire Phase 1 of the BRT infrastructure along this route. The work has been pushed up and the entire project is about 75 percent to completion. The rest of the construction activities to be done include completion of bus shelters, rigid pavements and terminals,” the Governor said
Mr Sanwo-Olu noted that government had started to address some impediments slowing down the construction work on the path, which, he said, included blocked drainage network along the route. The Governor said desilting of the identified drain channels at Katangowa market would be done to pave the way for completion work on the BRT lane.
He said his administration would be acquiring land to build mega bus depots for the BRT vehicles to be deployed to the area, saying after the completion of the first phase, work will commence on the Phase II of the project, which will stretch from Abule Egba to Sango, later this year.
“The extension of the BRT corridor to Ogun State border is part of the solutions we are bringing to address traffic congestion along Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway and reduce it to the barest minimum. This will create a robust transportation model for our residents living in border towns,” he stated.
The Governor warned against indiscriminate dumping of refuse on the BRT corridor, stressing that the government would not condone one-way driving along the route.
Business Post reports that the project, which was started under the last administration, is being handled and supervised by the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA).
