The Lagos-Badagry Expressway reconstruction/rehabilitation project is now enjoying steady funding unlike before, the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has said.
Despite this, the minister added that the early 2023 target for completion of the highway depended on factors like weather, traffic management and cooperation of the communities.
Fashola stated this during an on the spot inspection of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway project.
He seized the occasion to appeal to residents along the axis to desist from the theft of construction materials on site to give room for speedy completion of the project.
The minister said he received information that some persons took sand from the construction site to use for their buildings and other purposes, noting that such actions would lead to degradation of the road, while still under construction.
Fashola also appealed to communities along the corridor of the project to be patient and compliant with traffic management efforts because of the impact of rainfall on the project.
Apparently impressed by the level of work, he said «I think that the progress of work speaks for itself. The main problem on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway was always funding and budget, now that has been substantially addressed with the NNPC Tax Credit Scheme.
“So, the contractor is progressing as you can see. And even while the work is going on, you heard from one of the traditional rulers we spoke to this morning, the Oba of Ibereko, Oba Israel Okoya.
“And he said their journey times had been reduced significantly; places that used to take them three hours are now a short drive of less than 10 minutes.
“And work is still going on, you can see we are standing on a substantially completed part of the road,” he said.
The minister called for patience on the part of road users as the construction work continued with the rainy season, which was likely to cause discomfort to road users.
He said he had done the actual progress assessment, adding «you are standing on concrete and ashpalted portions as I have told you. On one side we have 16 kilometres of single carriageway apart from the dual carriageway completed. We will transfer work to the other side.”
“You saw in the early part from Agbara area where earth work is going on, you saw some of the parts that have been covered by FERMA (Federal Roads Maintenance Agency) around LASU (Lagos State University).”
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