The Federal Controller of Works in Ogun, Mr Olayiwola Komolafe, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday.

He said the maintenance work would take place on Kara Bridge outbound Lagos between Chainage 5+350 and 6+115.

Komolafe said the repair works, directed by the Minister of Works, Sen. Dave Umahi, would last two weeks and end on March 24.

According to him, there will be a partial closure of the affected section during the period, resulting in a narrowed road width for vehicles travelling outward Lagos.

The ministry said the measure was necessary to enable engineers to replace the damaged expansion joints and ensure the safety and durability of the bridge.

He advised motorists to plan their journeys ahead and consider alternative routes to reduce traffic congestion during the repair period.

“Motorists travelling from Ikorodu to Mowe, Sagamu and Ibadan are advised to go through Shimawa or Mosinmi.

“Those travelling from Lagos Island may explore the Epe corridor through Ijebu Ode to connect Sagamu, Ibadan and Mowe,” he advised.

Komolafe, however, noted that a shorter route may not necessarily be the fastest during the repair works.

He urged motorists to obey traffic management directives and drive cautiously around the work zone.

The controller expressed regret over any inconvenience the temporary partial closure might cause and appealed for the understanding and cooperation of road users.

Source: NAN

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The FRSC Lagos Sector Public Education Officer, SRC Oluwadamilola Jayeola, in a statement on Thursday said the crashes occurred between October 29 and 30.

Jayeola noted that the incidents, which involved multiple vehicles at different times, also resulted in injuries, and significant traffic disruption.

“The first crash took place on Oct. 29 around 20.00 hours and involved two white DAF trucks (Reg Nos. GGE 24 YJ and SBG 192 XB), with seven male passengers that did not sustain any death or injury.

“The probable cause of the crash is speeding, which resulted to loss of control.

“Also, the obstruction was promptly cleared by FRSC personnel in conjunction with Ojodu-Abiodun Police Division,’’ she said.

The officer, however, said that operatives responded promptly to all the crashes within minutes.

She added that operatives ensured quick rescue operations, removal of obstructions, and restoration of traffic flow.

Jayeola said that the second crash happened on October 29 at about 21.40 hours.

She said it involved two unidentified DAF trucks with six male passengers, of which two sustained injuries, while four died.

She said that the injured victims were evacuated: one taken to AZ Hospital, Magboro, and the other to the Lagos State Accident and Emergency Centre, Ojota.

The officer added that joint rescue operations were carried out by FRSC, the Nigeria Police, and the Lagos State Fire Service.

“The third crash happened at 22.15 hours involving a lone yellow truck (details yet to be confirmed); three male persons were involved with one killed.

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“The probable cause of the crash is reckless overtaking and loss of control.

“The deceased was conveyed to a mortuary by an ambulance from the Lagos State Ministry of Health,” she said.

Jayeola said that the fourth crash happened Thursday by 0520 hours, involving a tow truck (blue) and another truck (still submerged in the Isheri River at the time of report).

She said that five male passengers were involved; two injured, while one, or more were killed, pending retrieval operations from the Isheri River.

“Recovery operations are ongoing as FRSC, the Nigeria Police, and Lagos State emergency services are working to remove the submerged truck and clear the scene for normal traffic flow,” she said.

She pointed out that the crashes within a short timeframe around Kara Bridge underscored the dangers of speeding.

The Sector Commander, Kehinde Hamzat, appealed to motorists, especially truck drivers and fleet operators, to obey all road traffic regulations.

Hamzat also cautioned motorists to avoid overspeeding, distractions while driving and night journeys.

He urged motorists to ensure vehicles were roadworthy and properly maintained.

“Always drive within speed limits and stay alert behind the wheel,” Hamzat said.

Source: NAN

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A victim, Sheu Anafi, was rescued unhurt.

Men of the command took the battle to the door step of the hoodlums following a report lodged at Warewa divisional headquarters by a commercial driver.

The driver reported that while he was coming from Ilorin in his Ford commercial car with registration number LRN 596 ZY, loaded with seven passengers, on getting to the long bridge, there was traffic jam consequence upon which he drove through the untarred access road beside the bridge.

He said while driving through the said access road, they were attacked by some unknown gunmen which made all the passengers to run into different directions in the nearby bush.

READ ALSO: How we arrested 3 kidnappers along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway –Police

But when they all regrouped to continue their journey, it was discovered that one of the passengers by name Alhaji Sheu Anafi from Okeleele area of Ilorin had been abducted by the hoodlums.

Upon the report, the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, Warewa division, CSP Abdul Fatai Ogunsanya, led a joint operation consisting men of the command’s tactical teams, local Vigilantes, So Safe Corps and Oodua Peoples Congress, OPC, men for bush combing in search of the abducted man.

Their efforts yielded positive result when the hideout of the kidnappers was located and the security operatives engaged them in gun battle.

At the end of the encounter, one of the kidnappers, Ibraheem Abubakar, who claimed to have come from Sabonganmu-Bompai Road, Kano State, was arrested while others escaped with varying degrees of gunshot injuries.

The victim, a 62 years old Sheu Anafi was rescued unhurt.

The suspect has confessed being a member of seven-man gang terrorizing the stretch of the long bridge in recent time.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, CP Lanre Bankole, has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspect to the state Criminal Investigation Departments for discreet investigation.

The CP also appealed to members of the public, especially hospitals, to inform the police if anybody with gunshot injury was seen in their area.

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The Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, made this known on Friday in a statement issued by its spokesman, Mr. Bisi Kazeem.

The diversion, FRSC said, was as a result of the recent fire incidence that involved multiple articulated vehicles on the bridge.

The diversion, it was explained, would enable the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing to carry out an integrity test on the bridge as part of safety engineering measures to ascertain the extent of the damage on the road and effect the requisite repairs.

The test operation, FRSC said, would necessitate the narrowing of the Ibadan bound carriageway to two lanes.

As a result of the operation, motorists were urged to exercise caution at the diversion points, maintain common sense speed limit, and be lane disciplined while using the available portion of the road as the test operation will not require the total closure of the bridge.

However, FRSC also stated that alternative routes could be explored so as to ease off the burden on the motorable portion on the bridge as he motorists were advised to advantage of the available routes to decongest traffic around the bridge.

The alternative routes are: Ikorodu Road to Itokin-Ijebu-Ode to Iperu or Sagamu interchange.

Also, those driving on Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway will now go through Sango Ota – Itori inward Abeokuta to Sagamu interchange while vehicles heading to Ibadan on Lekki – Ajah to Ibeju Lekki to Epe – Ijebu-Ode are to pass through Sagamu interchange.

Those driving on Ikorodu roundabout inward Sabo roundabout should link Ikorodu-Sagamu Road.

Motorists are advised to call the FRSC toll free numbers 122 or the National Traffic Radio lines: 08052998090, 09067000015, 08052998012, for help and emergency response if necessary.

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The investigation is said to be with the intention of prosecution both the owners and drivers of the vehicles involved.

The order for the investigation of the explosion was given by the FRSC Corps Marshal, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi.

In a statement by the Corps Public Education Officer, FRSC, Bisi Kazeem, the Corps Marshal who decried the attendant loss of lives and damage to properties resulting from the “avoidable crashes”, expressed concern over the ugly incident noting that irrespective of the series of engagements with the various unions of tankers and trailers and major stakeholders in the road transport sector, the country still experienced such ugly trends due to undue violation of maximum safety standards by both drivers and owners of the vehicles.

Oyeyemi said that apart from several engagements with the unions and stakeholders, the Corps had also engaged drivers of Dangote Group during their 2019 annual drivers retreat, where he delivered series of lectures on basic road safety ideals and the imperatives of maintaining maximum safety standards at all times.

While emphatically stating that the situation was utterly unacceptable and must be brought to an end, the Corps Marshal immediately directed the Safety Engineering Unit of the Corps to commence thorough investigation into the crash and the Corps Legal Adviser to activate immediate prosecution of both the vehicle owners and the drivers to serve as deterrent to others.

It would be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had in 2019 set up a Presidential Task Force on haulage operation in Nigeria headed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, to look into issues affecting safe haulage operation in the country.

The task force activated proceedings and several effective and efficient management plans for haulage had been carried out to eradicate crashes involving articulated vehicles in the country.

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The site preparation toward the total reopening began on Saturday with a final inspection of the project by the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola.

When the News Agency of Nigerian, NAN, visited the site on Sunday, a heavy deployment of Federal Roads Safety Corps, FRSC, officials were noticed, to give support to construction workers removing diversion barriers.

The workmen removed demarcations on various sections of the 600 metres outbound Lagos carriageway where traffic was diverted between Kara Bridge and the Isheri Junction intersection.

All debris and construction materials were cleaned up, before FRSC at exactly 1:40 p.m. led a motorcade that led motorists outbound Lagos into the newly completed 600 metres stretch.

Motorists inbound Lagos felt eased as gridlock on the lane disappeared immediately as each lane totalling 1.2km was opened to traffic without merging at any point.

Some elated road users who spoke to NAN praised the Federal Government and the contractors of the project.

They, however, called for speedy completion of the entire Lagos Ibadan Expressway corridor.

Mrs Sadia Aturu, a resident of Magboro said that the opening of the Kara Bridge would remove all the hardships and avoidable accidents on the highway.

“Last week my husband slept on this road. He could not get home because there was an accident.

“We thank the government for this work but they should do more because we are really suffering on this road,” she said.

A commercial motorcycle operator, Mr Nura Yahaya, lauded the construction which he noted would reduce the congestion that made passengers patronise commercial motorcyclists on the highway.

Malam Ibrahim Kasimu-Zaria, a perishable foodstuffs dealer, praised the Federal Government for the repair, saying that “goods can now arrive Lagos on time’’.

He, however, appealed for speedy completion of other sections on the highway to boost commercial activities and reduce travel time.

Diversion of traffic on the first section began with the partial closure of the inbound Lagos portion on the Kara Bridge on September 2, 2019.

On December 1, 2019, construction on the inbound Lagos was completed but work on the outbound Lagos was suspended due to the yuletide, hence, the opening of the entire highway to traffic.

Work resumed on January 14, 2020 with the partial closure of the outbound Lagos portion on the Kara Bridge, resulting in another traffic diversion which compounded gridlock on the axis.

However, the construction of the portion was completed on Saturday leading to site preparation toward the total reopening of both the 600 metres outbound and 600 metres inbound carriageways.

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The Federal Ministry of Works and Housing engineer supervising the project, Mr Kayode Ibrahim, told the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, on telephone in Lagos on Sunday that the decision was reached after a meeting of  the relevant stakeholders.

“We might need to effect the diversion  on Tuesday morning so as to avoid the Monday morning rush. There is usually heavy traffic on Monday morning, so we feel it is better to make it Tuesday morning.

“All the stakeholders are involved in reaching this decision. They are: the Federal Roads Safety Corps, FRSC, and the  Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA. Others include the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Corps (TRACE), the Police, Julius Berger  Construction Plc., and the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing.

“We have been working together and we are on ground to minimise gridlock. It is nothing special, it is just a normal diversion.

“All the agencies are on ground, all hands are on deck, we have tow trucks, emergency response units. Julius Berger has a 24-hour emergency response unit that responds to all emergencies alongside other agencies.

“FRSC and Julius Berger have their tow trucks deployed, sometimes when we need NEMA and Fire Service we call them and they quickly respond to our calls,’’ he said.

Ibrahim who appealed for the cooperation of road users, added that the traffic regulatory agencies also would be  deploying power bikes to monitor and control breakdowns on the highway.

“LASTMA and FRSC are also deploying power bikes to go round to check traffic issues. We are very prepared, we are only appealing to the road users to be patient.

“Vehicles that are not road worthy should please stay away. People should use good vehicles to avert breakdowns on diversion areas,’’ Ibrahim told NAN.

The senior engineer explained that most crashes on the highway were usually at night and the emergency response units had always cleared all impediments before daybreak.

He said that the contractor would be  seizing opportunity of the dry season to speed up construction on various sections of the highway.

Ibrahim added that the same kind of diversion around Mowe, Car Park C and Magboro areas were going to be replicated at  the ‘Kara’ bridge end with adequate traffic management architecture to avert gridlock.

“If you go to ‘Kara’ bridge  now, the crash barriers are already lined for the diversion. As soon as we are set, we will just shift the traffic to all the places the barriers had been set.

“We can divert at this moment if we want to because everything is set but we are diverting on Tuesday.

“The whole essence of the diversion at the  various sections is to expedite the completion of the project. Now that we are in the dry season,  when we can do earth works, we can move faster than during the raining season.

“So, it is better that we open more work areas now that we are in  the dry season so as to be able to complete the job in good time.

“We have always worked on three work areas simultaneously, this diversion is not special at all,’’ he said.

NAN recalls that diversion on the section began with the partial closure of the inbound Lagos portion on the ‘Kara’ Bridge on September 2, 2019 resulting in traffic diversion.

On December 1, 2019, construction on the inbound Lagos was completed but work on the outbound Lagos was suspended due to the yuletide, hence, the opening of the entire highway to traffic.

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The Federal Controller of Works, Lagos, Adedamola Kuti, made this known as he declared that construction work had been completed in the Kara Bridge area.

He said construction work would begin on the outbound Lagos traffic side.

His words:  “Now that inbound has been completed, we don’t want to start work on the outbound and leave it halfway, so we decided to open the road to commuters tomorrow, Sunday, so that people can move freely this Christmas.”

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