Construction work will now resume on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway Monday Jan 09 – FG

The Federal Government says construction work on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway will resume on Monday, January 09 to complete the section between Kara and Long Bridge.

Federal Controller of Works in Lagos State, Mr Umar Bakare, disclosed this after ordering the contractors to vacate the road to allow holidaymakers returning from home to have easy movement.

Julius Berger, one of the two contractors handling the road project, returned to the site on Tuesday after leaving in December 2022, to continue work between the Long Bridge and Kara bus stop on the Lagos-bound carriageway.

The contractors’ return to site and the consequent gridlock saw commuters groaning on the highway on Thursday.
This led the Federal Controller of Works to suspend work and supervise the removal of crash barriers on the highway on the Kara Section on Friday.
Bakare told newsmen after reopening Section One of the highway to traffic that the measure was to give opportunity for those returning from end of year holiday to have better motoring experience.
He said that the contractors were able to carry out quick repairs till early hours of Friday before removing the crash barriers in anticipation of huge return journey of holidaymakers over the weekend.

The controller said that the contractors would return on Monday to complete the Kara-Long Bridge section within 20 days.
He said temporary repairs were done on some sections in December, and the contractors were able to further upgrade work on their short return in January.
“We understand and realize that there are still a lot of people who are still coming back from their various journeys.
“To this extent, we have asked the contractor, after completing that section (Kara), to hold on and remove the barriers to come back next week when we shall come back to complete the other section between Long Bridge and Kara to the final layer,” Bakare said.
The controller said the government would make announcements, carry the public along, and always sensitise the public concerning the progress of work.
He appealed for patience of road users and lane discipline around construction zones, noting that government was always concerned about their welfare and need for them to have good motoring experiences.
Bakare said the schedule of government to complete the entire project in March 2023 was still on course.
Section One of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway project stretches from Ojota in Lagos State to the Sagamu Interchange.