Gridlock in Okene as passengers stranded for several hours

Motorists and passengers travelling along Okene-Lagos-Abuja roads are having nightmare following a gridlock on the busy highway.

Many motorists and commuters, particularly those using articulated vehicles have been stranded on the road for over 48 hours as trailers and lorries were stocked in a ditch occasioned by some damaged sections of the road.

The gridlock is about 6 kilometres from Federal College of Education Okene to Total Okene, another 6 kilometres from Itape to FCE, a straight of about 12 kilometres.

The Okene-Itakpe road that would have served as an alternative route is also damaged and not good for articulated vehicles.

The situation of the road, however, became worse because of heavy rain on Sunday which made many vehicles trapped on the road.

The trunk “A” road had been given motorists linking the south with Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) problem particularly some meters before and after the Federal College of Education (Okene).

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Some trailers and lorries that attempted to manage the road during the rains were however trapped in the gullies already created by the damage to the road.

Apart from the vehicles that were strapped, many also broke down on the highway because of the heavy rain.

Travellers who spoke with our correspondent lamented that they were travelling from the north to either western and eastern part of the country but got stranded in Okene as a result of the bad road.

They added that the situation had become so difficult for them that they had to abandon their vehicles and look for any possible means to get to their destination.

However, members of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and security agents are doing everything possible to ease the situation as they took control of the heavy traffic jam.

Within the township commercial motorcyclists were making a big profit as they charged stranded passengers that are willing to find their way out of the critical situation.

The state commandant of the FRSC, Olusegun Martins, however, said the organisation had been working with other agencies to bring normalcy to the area.

According to him, the gridlock was due to failed portions of the road that had made articulated vehicles trapped in the sections.

He said a combined effort of the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Federal Controller of Works, the state ministry of works had been put in place to ease the gridlock.

Martins added that the failed sections of the road were being excavated with a plan to repair them and further make the area motorable.

He said the affected government agencies were working round the clock to ensure that the gridlock disappear and people can ply the highway without much stress.