By Ahmed Rahma
The Federal Ministry of Works and Housing has disclosed that the Apapa–Oworonshoki road project would be completed in 2021.
Over the weekend, the Director of Highway Construction and Rehabilitation in the ministry, Mr Funso Adebiyi, said while inspecting the four sections project that the road, which started about 3 years ago, was achieving varying levels of completion.
Engr Adebiyi informed that in the first phase covering 27km busy road, about 61 per cent has been achieved as of today, noting that on section one, about 70 per cent completion has been achieved.
He further said for the second section, it has been awarded and work would commence there soon, adding that for section 3, they’ve achieved 63 per cent; while Section 4 has recorded about 41 per cent.
The Director explained that before the intervention of the federal government through the Ministry of Works and Housing, the road was in a deplorable state and this hindered the free flow of traffic on the road.
“But from what we have seen so far on the finished portions of the road, I want to assure you that bad days are over, we have good days here now and better days are ahead of us.
“So, Nigerians should bear with us, we are making progress and I can assure you that by the end of this year, Apapa port users would have the best road because we have made significant progress,” he said.
Speaking on the economic benefit of the project, the Director of Highway, South-West, Engr. Kuti Adedamola, said apart from the ease of traffic on the road, the project has created about 600 direct jobs and over 1000 indirect jobs, thereby improving the livelihood of Nigerians in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s dream to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.
Also commenting on the quality of the job, the Federal Controller of Works, Lagos, Engr. Kayode Popoola, explained that several layers, if construction went underneath, with up to eight inches thickness of the concrete to make the rigid pavement strong for durability.
Engr Adebiyi noted that the current traffic gridlock experienced on some sections of the road was not due to the construction but the illegal parking of trailer drivers on the bridge, adding that trailer drivers should make use of the trailer parks along the Corridor and the newly constructed one for transit to the port.
