28th January, 2020
Nigeria’s Federal Government is set to demolish more buildings on Lagos-Ibadan expressway in ongoing reconstruction of the expressway.
Funsho Adebiyi, Director of Highways, South West, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, told newsmen on Tuesday during a tour of the road, including the Ikorodu-Sagamu Road and Apapa-Oshodi-Oworonshoki expressway, said interchanges and flyovers are part of the features of the new road.
He said that the inclusion of interchanges and flyovers warranted the need for demolition of structures and buildings along some axis of the road to give room for the new developments.
According to him, some buildings had been marked but that some other structures would go down.
He said that 75 buildings were earlier marked for demolition around the Redeemed Christian Church of God axis but more are expected to go down to pave way for expansion of the highway.
He, however, assured that adequate compensations would be paid to owners of properties affected before any demolition exercise begins.
“We are taking advantage of the weather to fast track the construction process and we are making significant progress.
“We not leaving any stone unturned, as a matter of fact on some of our sites we are now working 24/7 to ensure we make significant progress before the rains come
“Those around Lotto should bear with us, if you see your house marked for demolition it does not mean the end has come, we will not demolish the houses until all compensations are paid. Even if we are to relocate pockets of communities we will do our best to ensure we move them to a better place,” he said.
He said that President Muhammadu Buhari was committed to massive reconstruction of highways across the nation including the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
Adebiyi appealed to road users to bear the pockets of discomforts which the ministry was working hard to address and obey road and traffic rules to minimize gridlock.
He also appealed to motorists to observe lane discipline and speed limits around the construction zones.
Adebiyi explained that different layers of quality materials go into the foundation of the construction up till it gets to the final layer of 600 mm thickness for durability.
“This layer is the macadam but we are still building to add more layers to get to this drain level to ensure water does not remain on the road. All together the cross section is about 600 metres thick,” he said.
He assured that there was adequate traffic diversion and enough funding for smooth completion of the project, while appealing to residents around Lotto on the highway to bear with government.
He also appealed to truck drivers to stop indiscriminate parking on the highway to give access for construction.
Adebiyi said that almost 20 kilometers have been completed out of about 43 on section one which spans from Ojota in Lagos to the Sagamu Interchange representing 42 per cent completion.
He said that 45 kilometers have been completed out of 84 kilometers on the section two of the project which spans from Sagamu Interchange to Ojo in Ibadan representing 45 per cent completion.
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