Ongoing construction work on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway will be put on hold from Tuesday, 27 June to Sunday, 2 July 2023.
This is to, among other considerations, aid the free flow of traffic during the Muslim Eid-el-Kabir festivities coming up this week, according to a press statement issued on Monday by the Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Mrs. Olukorede Kesha, on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing (Works Sector).
“Due to the recent heavy traffic flow being experienced on the Lagos-Shagamu route in the last couple of days, the inclement weather conditions, the forthcoming Eid Kabir & the advice of the traffic management team deployed to manage traffic-related issues on the project, construction activities on this ever busy & very important highway will be suspended from Tuesday, 27th of June to Sunday, 2nd of July, 2023,” Kesha said.
“This is to allow travellers easy passage during the Eid holiday & minimise the discomfort during this very important period,” she said.
She advised travellers to cooperate with Traffic Management Team deployed on the highway to manage traffic.
“Construction activities will resume by Monday, 3rd of July, 2023,” she said.
Construction work on the 127.6km Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria’s busiest inter-state route linking the ancient city of Ibadan, Oyo State capital, and the country’s most populous city and commercial hub, Lagos, has been ongoing for many months now after having suffered several delays in the past. The work on the road means regular partial road closures leading to harrowing gridlock on the axis.
The gesture by the Federal Government is not new. In December 2022, as well as in January 2023, the Federal Ministry of Works had also temporarily suspended construction work on the expressway that is a major route to the country’s northern, southern and eastern parts in order to make to and from travelling on the road less cumbersome for Christmas and New Year holidaymakers.
The five-day suspension of construction work on the expressway announced by the Federal Government on Monday will be a great relief for travellers on that route this period.
