A Desperate Cry To Buhari

Nigerians who travel on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway are desperately crying to President Muhammadu Buhari to direct the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency, FERMA, to immediately move to the failed portions of the busy highway and fix them. Several man-hours are lost daily at the bad spots that cause traffic gridlocks for several hours.

The road is notorious for deep and dangerous potholes which have been widening with each passing day. Motorists and commuters have not had it so bad lately. Driving or travelling through the Arepo axis of the highway and other parts of the road has become a nightmare. Travellers now spend three hours rather than ten minutes to cover a ten kilometre stretch of the road where potholes have taken over.

Besides losing precious man-hours, the bad spots on the road frequently cause accidents, some fatal.
Last Friday a truck conveying goods overturned and blocked a section of the road, causing gridlock that stretched several kilometres into Lagos. Travellers were stuck in the gridlock for several hours. A similar situation was witnessed on Sunday when Arepo junction was blocked and the ensuing gridlock trapped commuters for hours.

The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency appears to have abandoned its mandate, which is to regularly maintain federal highways across the country. The poor state of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway mirrors the state of other highways in the country that have fallen apart owing to lack of maintenance for decades. These highways which were constructed in the 70s have also been reduced to death traps by big trucks that convey heavy cargo from the ports to the hinterland.

As we approach another festive season, with attendant increase in commercial activities, the volume of traffic will increase and the situation will be further compounded if the bad spots on this strategic road are not repaired immediately. Nigerians are going through hell on this road. Their plight must be ameliorated without delay. No magic is needed to apply palliative measures to fill craters and potholes on an important road as this.