While the commuters using the Oshodi/Apapa expressway, especially as it affects the Mile 2 end to the Apapa port may have had some sought of relief as the traffic situation on the road seemed to have improved in the recent time, one will be forced to ask if the situation will continue to be like this or will it later deteriorate to what it used to be about three months ago.
For about one month now, movement from Mile 2 to Apapa had improved as one can now access the Apapa port from Mile 2 within a record time as against what obtained about three months ago when the road became impassable.
Our correspondent who boarded a bus from Oshodi to Tincan recently reported that it took him less than forty minutes to get to Tincan island with little or no delay on the road, a trend which was not possible in the last three months.
Recall that commuters spent almost the whole day on the road and in some occasions were forced to abandon their journey half way to Apapa on account of the traffic situation which many described as a nightmare.
The situation was so bad that the Lagos state Governor, Babatunde Fashola had to pay unscheduled visits to assess the situation of the road blaming the situation on corruption, ineptitude and incompetent on the parts of the government agencies that are operating in the ports and the port environment.
The Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo was said to have driven against the traffic as he drove on one way in order to beat the traffic as he went to take delivery of the abandoned power equipment at Apapa port recently.
One cannot mention the man-hour lost on account of the traffic gridlock not to talk of the many economic loss to the government as well as the individuals who lost their lives and properties on the road as container laddened trucks had on several occasions fall on moving vehicles as well as on pedestrian killing some persons.
The economy of the private investors in the ports otherwise known as the terminal operators and the shipping companies, the freight forwarders, the importers, the truckers, residents and indeed all major stakeholders were adversely affected thereby prompting ultimatum and counter ultimatum from the stakeholders to the federal government threatening to shut down the ports if nothing urgent was done to salvage the roads.
It seemed however, that that threats paid off as the federal government responded by taking away the contact for the reconstruction of the road earlier awarded to a construction firm and re-awarded it to Julius Berger PLC with a two week marching order to carry out some palliative works on the road to enable free flow of traffic.
One month after such order, Primetime Reporters went back to carry out an on the spot assessment of the road and to its utter dismay, discovered improved traffic situation on the road and the spot at coconut bus stop where commuters leaving Apapa for Mile 2/Oshodi had to wait for ages as trucks maneuver the potholes on the spot to avoid falling was now filled up with cement granite and vehicles now move freely on the spot without hitches.
It also noticed that the business life, which hitherto was long gone due to lack of patronage on the part of the customers, had picked up again in the area.
Speaking to Primetime Reporters on the development, the Secretary, Joint Council of Seaport Truckers (JCOST), Mr. Godwin Ikeji attributed the success so achieved to the meeting among the truckers, the Petroleum Tanker Drivers of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (PTD/NUPENG) and the authorities where they all agreed to cooperate with Julius Berger to enable them do their work adding that that was what they were enjoying.
Ikeji however disclosed that what was in place at the moment was a temporary measure adding that if nothing was done within this dry period, the situation of the road would worsen if the rains return to meet the road in the condition it was then.
He said,” we are enjoying it, everybody is enjoying. It but it was a small thing, for the first time, they looked at the issue and attacked the real cause of the problem and that is addressing the wet cargo section, appealing and approaching the tanker drivers, the PTD/NUPENG for them to remove their trucks on the road, then repairing the death trap at Coconut”.
“Anyway, for now, we still have a temporary measure. If nothing is done and the rains come again, the situation will return. But for now, everybody is enjoying it because of the dry weather”.
On his part, the Chairman, Road Transport Employers’ Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Tincan Island Chapter, Alhaji Isiaka Olalere attributed the development to the series of letters written to the authorities by their members and other stakeholders in the industry.
Olalere recalled that it was in response to one of their letters that the Ministry of Works through the federal Controller of Works promised that the remedial works on the road would soon commenced.
He further linked the success so far achieved to the collaborative work among the stakeholders like PTD/NUPENG, the truckers, the federal government and Lagos State government.
“Infact, I thank the Lagos State government for facilitating the smooth running of the project because on daily basis, they called us and hear from us, hear our suggestions and we have given them our support”.
“The Lagos state government is also mounting pressure on the federal government. We were called for a meeting at Beecroft about three times to iron out how to make the road free from traffic and at that meeting, the representative of the Controller of Works was in attendance and he promised that sooner or later, they will flag off the reconstruction of the road”.
“The day they were to flag off the road, we were all invited; we were there at beach land here where all stakeholders promised to clear their trucks for the flagging off of the road”.
“So, on Monday that was on the Sallah day, Julius Berger started the work, that is why the road is flowing now. The government promised that that one is just a palliative measure, that the reconstruction of the road will commence as soon as possible”, Olalere said.
When asked if the permanent work on the road had commenced , he stated that,” the permanent work on the road has not yet started. The temporary one is ongoing. The palliative measure they put in place, we are enjoying it now. As time goes on, we continue to put pressure on the federal government so that they will fix the road permanently”.
Mr. Ikeji however believed that having poured the cement granite on the road to make it motorable, one would have want the federal government to quickly tar the road as a permanent solution to the traffic situation while appealing to Julius Berger to expedite action on the road so gas to lessen the burden the commuters had to bear on account of the road.
While admitting that the relocation of tank farm at Apapa to other location would be of immense help, Mr. ikeji however said that that would be a long term solution saying that the demand for the use of the road was increasing by the day without the commensurate expansion of the road describing it as the problem.
“Now in Lagos, there is opportunity, if they remove all these tank farms from Apapa area, Apapa is already an industrial area, compounding it with tank farms will make things more difficult and tank farms cannot operate without the road haulage. We cannot build rail line overnight”.
“So, if they relocate them, we have vast land in the snake island, at Lekki and at Epe, if they take them there, then let them start new thing that side and that will ease off the whole of the Apapa area”.
Also on the relocation of the tank farms, Alhaji Isiaka Olalere described the presence of tank farms at Apapa as a major threat arguing that the prompt relocation of those tank farms would bring about a permanent solution to the traffic gridlock.
He however opined that the relocation of the tank farms would not be an easy one as it was above the capacity of the Lagos state government maintaining that only the federal government could do that even though as according to him, “it will not be now”.
On the expansion of the road, both men agreed that there might not be room for further expansion of the road as doing that would be to encroach on private properties and residences in the area.
While Mr. Gowin Ikeji believed that as long as the volume of trucks plying the road keep increasing on daily basis, the road would keep being congested, Alhaji Olalere observed that the issue of gridlock can only be reduced and not totally eradicated owing to the number of trucks that access the ports on daily basis.
Whereas Mr. Ikeji strongly believed that the permanent solution would be to relocate the tank farms since one cannot move or relocate the water or seaport, Alhaji Olalere believed that the proper management of the road can reduce the gridlock.
“The issue of containers are there, if we are able to maintain holding bay, let us say, no container will be brought here in the day time, let all of them go to holding bay, that will ease the problem also”, Olalere stated.
While one may commend the government and the stakeholders for the effort so far made, it is pertinent to point at this juncture that it is not yet celebration time for the stakeholders and the government alike on the Apapa gridlock as more needed to be done to ensure that the sad days did not return.
This is moreso as the seaport is ranked the second highest revenue earner for the nation even as it need no mention that employment capacity of the sector for the teeming population of Nigerians.
Efforts should be made to ensure that that all-important sector of the economy is not allowed to suffer neglect, as doing so will amount to a devastating consequence to the generality of the nation’s economy as any negligence on one sector of the economy has a way of robbing off on others. The time to act is now.
