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Tag: Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway

  • Sanwo-Olu charges FG to take over Lagos- Badagry Expressway

    Sanwo-Olu charges FG to take over Lagos- Badagry Expressway

    …Lagos State Is Very Important, Critical To Nigeria Economy – Reps

    Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has urged the Federal Government to provide adequate funding for the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, an international gateway to West African countries.

    He said Lagos State Government has taken a leap to start a 10-lanes highway on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway and it has already done almost 18 kilometers of the road. He therefore appealed to the Federal Ministry of Works to push it further and take it to Badagry.

    Governor Sanwo-Olu while receiving the House of Representatives Committee on Works led by its chairman, Hon. Abubakar Kabir Abubakar, during a courtesy visit at the Lagos House, Ikeja on Monday also tasked the Federal Government to speed up the construction of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

    The Governor, who commended the House of Representatives members for coming to Lagos for on the spot assessment of the works carried out in the State by the Federal Ministry of Works, said urgent action should be taken to work on the Otedola Bridge area of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, to prevent regular accidents on the axis.

    He said: “We are happy with the level of work that has been done on Apapa-Oshodi Road but we need to go back to do a lot of clean-up. There is still a side road that has not been completed. We know this is a special dispensation given the Order 8 that has been used but we can still go back and clean up the areas, especially around the Tin-Can Port and Apapa Port, so that we can free the traffic in all those areas and take it up to Ijora.

    “Lagos-Badagry Expressway is one that I am aware of that doesn’t have sufficient funding.

    Lagos-Badagry Expressway is an international gateway. We heard that Ghana, Republic of Benin and Togo have done their own; it is trans-West Africa corridor which five countries pass through. But it is only the Nigerian part of it that has not been fully fixed, which is from Seme boarder into Lagos and go straight to the port.

    “But Lagos on its own has taken leap to start something. So, we are doing a 10-lanes highway and we have done almost 18 kilometers of that and we are taking it to a place called Okokomaiko. We have been expecting the Federal Government and the Federal Ministry of Works to push it and take it to Badagry. Our desire is for them to make it 10-lanes highway. We are building for the future and we can put a rail in the middle of the corridor. When we are building for a future, we should not be scared. It is an international road and it has capacity to take high level of traffic. That is one place we believe you will look into.”

    Governor Sanwo-Olu while commending the Federal Ministry of Works’ intervention on some of the federal roads in Lagos State urged Federal Government to speedily consider the major failed portions of the Lagos-Ota-Abeokuta Road and other Class A federal roads that are important in decongesting traffic out of Lagos.

    He said: “We are not living everything to Federal Government. We are also taking up the responsibility of trying to build the Fourth Mainland Bridge. We will work and collaborate with Federal Government at some point. It is a 37-kilometer ring road that is going to exit finally on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. It is audacious but we are looking to use PPP model to be able to build it.

    “We believe that you should be able to see the Phase One of it coming out before the end of this administration. We are not leaving anything to chance. We are doing 18-kilometer six-lane, rigid pavement in Lekki-Epe Expressway. We are doing 10 kilometers six-lane regional roads and several others. We are doing bridges and other constructions on our own. That is what can open up and free a city.

    “We are not just only doing that, we are pushing movement on our waterways. We are doing our rails so that we can have integrated mass transportation using rail, waterways and road connectivity in Lagos. We want everybody to come here to see that it is comparable to any city in the world. That is our plan.”

    Speaking earlier, Hon. Abubakar said his committee has reached out to the contractor in charge of the Marine and Eko Bridge and they promised that the project will be completed in four weeks’ time, adding that the committee is also working on a new project in Lagos, which is Isolo-Mushin Road.

    He said the Committee will also work tirelessly toward the completion of the Ikorodu-Sagamu Road for the project to be ready before the end of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

    “Lagos State is very important and critical to Nigeria’s economy. Lagos is important to us and that is why road construction is very critical for Lagos State. We have important roads in Lagos State. The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila has directed our committee to give Lagos special attention because of the importance of the state to the federation.

    “We have to support the efforts Lagos State Government and Federal Government in making sure that Lagos has best roads so that people will not be stuck in traffic for four to five hours. We have to do what we can to make sure that Lagosians have the best roads. We will do our best to make that happens,” he promised.

  • Relief in Ojokoro as Sanwo-Olu commissions 31 Roads in Ifako-Ijaiye

    Relief in Ojokoro as Sanwo-Olu commissions 31 Roads in Ifako-Ijaiye

    …‘It’s Another Promise Fulfilled’ – Governor

    It was all fanfare in Ojokoro, a densely populated suburb in Ifako-Ijaiye Local Government Area of Lagos State, on Monday as Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu fulfilled the commitment given to the residents, with the inauguration of 31 network of roads recently completed by the current administration.

    The contract for the roads, which adds up to a total of 20.216 kilometres in length, was awarded in 2017 in two phases, but construction work was stalled shortly after, leaving the roads in deplorable condition. For about two years, the hapless residents groaned in distress plying the roads.

    Sanwo-Olu, on assumption of office, reviewed the contract for the roads and promised to complete them before the end of December.

    Six months after, the Governor fulfilled the promise. He led members of the State’s cabinet to the area to formally commission the newly constructed roads in a ceremony greeted by spontaneous celebrations.

    The joyous residents trooped out in their numbers to receive the Governor and his entourage for the formal opening of the roads, which the Governor described as “critical assets”.

    Sanwo-Olu said the Government moved to complete the 31 roads to relieve residents of the agony brought about by perennial traffic gridlock in the area, adding that the opening of the roads would reduce travel time along Lagos-Abeokuta corridor.

    He said: “Ojokoro Local Council Development Area is a strategic settlement with a fast growing population and huge need for infrastructural renewal. The construction of the 31 network of roads being commissioned today was specifically executed to offer traffic relief to residents of this rapidly developing area.

    “This development will improve the socio-economic activities and road connectivity within the axis. Prior to the completion of these important projects, traffic in Ojokoro area grew tremendously considering the high rate of the population growth and its attendant vehicular density. Now that we have completely transformed the roads, it is time for relief as we fulfil the promise we made to residents.”

    The Governor reiterated that provision of roads and critical infrastructure remained the cornerstone of his administration’s development agenda, known as Project T.H.E.M.E.S, stressing that the delivery of good road network would help the Government manage traffic effectively.

    He added that the event was an indication of his Government’s resolve to complete and deliver projects inherited from the last administration.

    The Governor urged the residents to take ownership of the roads, imploring them not to allow activities that would damage the roads.

    Special Adviser to the Governor on Works and Infrastructure, Mrs. Aramide Adeyoye, said prior to Sanwo-Olu’s intervention, the existing conduit drains had been blocked, worsening the roads’ conditions.

    The residents, Adeyoye said, usually experienced perennial flooding, which washed away the surface of the roads and created gullies that made the roads impassable for motorists.

    She said: “The construction of this strategic network of roads have been completed and delivered with improved features, which include reinforced concrete drains, cover slabs and walkways on both sides of the road. Some of the roads have cross culverts and outfalls drains at some specific locations.

    “There are also lay-bys and some major parts of the areas also have some major public utilities, such as electric poles, transformers and streetlights with power generating sets. The street lightings have started to make positive impact on security, night life and the local economy.”

    She urged the populace to protect the roads by ensuring that drainage channels are not blocked by refuse. She told the residents to turn over anyone caught vandalising the roads and their complementary amenities to enforcement agents.

    Member representing Ifako-Ijaiye in the House of Assembly, Hon. Rasheed Makinde, led residents to the ceremony to appreciate the Governor’s gesture.

    He pledged that those living in the area would reciprocate the gesture by keeping faith with APC and pay tax regularly.

    Makinde said there would be further advocacy to sensitise residents on the danger of converting the roads to a space for commercial activities or mechanic workshops, promising that anyone caught would be handed over to the authorities.

    Chairman of Ojokoro LCDA, Hon. H.I.D Tijani, said the formal opening of the roads was a Christmas gift to the residents, adding that the development would keep the faith residents had in the All Progressives Congress stronger.

    The high point of the ceremony was the formal opening of the roads by Governor Sanwo-Olu in four locations, including Odun Alayo/Funsho Owoyemi Junction, Edun Akara/Olorisade Junction, Adenekan/Rabiu Junction and Udeh/Brown Rotary Junction.