- Says traffic congestion avoidable, deplorable
- Umahi threatens controllers of works, engineers, says they face disciplinary action
- Sanwo-Olu takes responsibility, blames inadequate communication
The Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, on Thursday apologised to Lagos residents and President Bola Tinubu for the disruption caused by the sudden closure of the Independence Bridge.
Umahi made the apology when he toured the bridge in Lagos.
He said that the closure of the bridge was for urgent rehabilitation of the collapsed retaining wall but was made without his knowledge or authorisation.
He said, “Unfortunately, when the bridge was to be closed, I was not informed. It is very unfortunate because for a bridge to be closed, especially in Lagos, as has been the tradition, I should be informed as the minister.
“We should also have studied the implication of it even in an emergency situation. We would have deployed an emergency evaluation of the implication of closing the bridge.”
Umahi warned that controllers of works and engineers would face disciplinary action if such an incident would happen again.
“I use the opportunity to warn all controllers and engineers all over the country. Never close a road or close any bridge without running through the Permanent Secretary, who will seek permission from the honourable minister of works,” he said.
The minister acknowledged the efforts of Lagos State Government in managing traffic flow during the closure.
He also took responsibility for the error, saying: “I take responsibility for it, even though I did not order it, but every action by any staff of the ministry of works, I take responsibility for it.”
Umahi said that the closure, which caused significant traffic congestion, was avoidable.
He said, “If we were to do this properly, there would have been a different kind of method deployed and it wouldn’t have necessitated the total closure.”
According to him, even if closure was necessary, it would have been done in a way that would take three days: Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and necessary remedial work would have been put in place.
“What we are doing now is to restore the bridge temporarily within the next three days. By Sunday, this place will be totally open.”
He added that a permanent solution would be implemented after a two-week assessment.
“Then, after two weeks, we will look at the settlements, and then we will take out three days to put the permanent structure. That is what we are going to do,” he said.
The minister emphasised the competence of the contractor handling the project, Build Well.
“Build Well is a reputable company, and they have been restoring a lot of failures on our bridges in Lagos, some of them 53 years old.
“Some bridges’ spans have been lifted, especially Eko Bridge, Marina Bridge, and even the Lagos-Ibadan Bridge. They are also intervening in all of them,” he added.
The minister also said that the design of the bridge would be varied to address the emergency situation.
He said, “The design will be varied according to the emergency situation we have on ground, and the contractor is going to cooperate with us.”
He pledged to personally oversee the restoration efforts, saying, “I am not going until the bridge is fully restored by Sunday, we will work day and night to restore it, and then we will evaluate it.”
The bridge was initially closed on April 1 for essential maintenance and rehabilitation works, with the government planning to complete the repairs by May.
Sanwo-Olu takes responsibility, blames inadequate communication
Also, the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has taken full responsibility and apologised to motorists who endured prolonged traffic gridlock for several hours on Wednesday following the closure of the Independence Bridge in Victoria Island, Lagos.
Speaking during an on-the-spot assessment of the Independence Bridge on Thursday morning, Governor Sanwo-Olu, who was accompanied by the Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi; his Information and Strategy counterpart, Gbenga Omotoso and Special Adviser to the Governor on Transport, Sola Giwa, among other state officials, said inadequate public communication and planning about the road closure contributed to the traffic congestion witnessed by motorists on Wednesday.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, who noted that work on the bridge had commenced earlier but the full impact became evident due to the road closure, attributed the heavy traffic to the mass return of workers after the Eid-el-Fitr holiday, with a large number of commuters resuming duty at the same time.
“This was a case of everyone rushing out at the same time after a long weekend to return to their workplaces. This part of the city (Island) is the Central Business District. It was due to inadequate communication, and I take full responsibility.
“Work had already started on the bridge and it was assumed that people were aware. Communication is key to enforcement, and we must continue providing updates to help people plan alternative routes,” he said.
The Governor said the bridge would be closed for about three weeks and therefore appealed to residents whose jobs do not require physical presence on the Island to consider alternative work arrangements, as was done during the COVID-19 pandemic, to reduce vehicular movement and help ease congestion on the roads.
“For those who don’t need to be physically present on the Island in the next two to three weeks, I encourage you to use virtual means such as telephone and Zoom meetings. Plan ahead for your business and consider working remotely.
“This is not the time to drive recklessly or go against traffic. A little patience will go a long way in solving the problem,” the Governor advised.
The Governor assured that additional traffic enforcement officers and security personnel would be deployed to manage traffic flow and ensure the safety of motorists throughout the rehabilitation period to mitigate the impact of the closure.
“You will see twice the number of LASTMA officers on the road, working late into the night to ease the congestion,” he said.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, while responding to the directive by the Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, for the immediate reopening of the bridge, said the order might not be feasible, given the current state of the road.
He explained that ongoing excavation work had rendered the route impassable.
