The Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Engr. Olukorede Keisha, has announced that the Federal Government has fully completed the reconstruction of the Mile Two to Tin Can Island port of the Apapa-Oshodi expressway.
However, she placed blame on the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) and Lagos State Ministry of Transport for the increasing number of motorists driving against traffic to access Lagos ports.
The construction of the Mile 2-Tin Can axis of the ever-busy expressway has been ongoing for several years, with the Federal Ministry of Works repeatedly failing to meet set deadlines, despite previous assurances. Former Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Mr. Kayode Poopola, had previously stated that there was no cause for alarm regarding the completion of the road. He assured that it would be completed by November 2022, along with the longer stretch of the Apapa-Oshodi-Ojota-Oworonshoki expressway project.
However, during a tour along the Mile 2-Tin Can port access road last week, it was observed that motorists travelling towards Apapa were forced to use both the main carriageway and service lanes driving against traffic to reach Lagos ports. This was primarily due to the large number of tanker vehicles occupying the main carriageway leading to the Tin Can Island Port from Mile Two.
Although the main carriageway to the port has been completed, it has however been taken over by petroleum product tankers, leaving only a single lane on the carriageway and the service lanes for all motorists travelling to and from Apapa and its environs.
In a chat with our correspondent, Mrs. Olukorede Keisha, the current Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, stated that the Mile 2-Tin Can road construction has been fully completed and is open to traffic on both carriageways.
She emphasized that the traffic challenges faced by motorists along the road are not caused by the Ministry of Works or the contractors, but by the obstruction of the traffic flow by tankers, for which she fingered the NPA and the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation as being responsible.
Engr. Keisha acknowledged that some finishing touches still needed to be put in place, such as lane markings and a few others. She explained that the contractor would resume work on the remaining tasks to ensure the road’s full completion.
However, Mr. Charles Ugoji, the Secretary of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers branch of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (PTD-NUPENG), alleged that the major challenge on the road was caused by the construction, which resulted in the long stretch and heavy presence of tankers along the Mile Two-Tin Can road.
He called on the contractors to open the road and hand it over to the government to restore traffic sanity along the corridor.
According to a road contractor who preferred to remain anonymous, the Mile Two-Tin Can road is fully completed and open to traffic on both sides. The contractor confirmed that repairs were conducted on the Mile 2 Bridge during the last inspection, and the road is now accessible to vehicles.
