Ahead of a new working week that begins today, the Third Mainland Bridge, which was closed midnight on Friday, was reopened yesterday at 5pm seven hours earlier than scheduled.
The Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Mr Adedamola Kuti, cleared the 11.8-kilometre bridge for use after the three-day investigative maintenance test.
Speaking with The Nation while inspecting the work, Kuti said “significant progress” was made on the testing of the expansion joints. The results, he said, would be sent to the laboratory for further assessment before being collated.
The exercise, which was the first phase of tests to be conducted on the bridge, covered the Ebute-Metta Junction to the Adeniji Adele end.
During the exercise, officials of the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing with engineers from Borini Prono, drove heavy duty trucks each weighing about 30 tons, at different speeds through all the joints within the span. The reading at every joint was then captured by specialised equipment upon contact with the trucks.
“We have gone very far, we have made appreciable progress as far as this investigative test is concerned. Maintenance is a continuous exercise and it doesn’t take anything away from the structural integrity of this bridge, so there is no cause for alarm. After this, we shall still go into the lagoon to test the beams and pillars of the bridge, so it is continuous. Motorists need not exercise any fear about the safety of this bridge,” Kuti said.
Director of Highways, Bridges and Designs Adetokunbo Sogbesan allayed fears of structural defect and safety of the Carter Bridge, declaring it “structurally okay and safe for use.”
Sogbesan was reacting to an online post on the safety of the bridge cracks on parts of its outer walls around the outbound Iddo link road.
He explained that the cracks were slabs meant to beautify the bridge, adding that they had nothing to do with the beams or structureal integrity of the 60-year-old bridge.
According to Sogbesan, the beams of the bridge had hollows which were covered by slabs but heavy duty vehicles carrying loads beyond their headroom pulled off some outer covering of the bridge.
“We are here to allay the fears of Lagosians about the Carter Bridge. This bridge was commissioned in July 1958, that is, 60 years ago, by Borini Prono Nigeria Ltd. The method of construction used is that the beams have hollows. The hollows are spaces, but for aesthetics measures the beams were covered with reinforced walls. The structural stability of the bridge both longitudinal and diagonal beams are structurally okay. It is the walls that are broken. We have been here before to examine and inspect the bridge and we are to confirm that structurally, the bridge is okay,” Sogbesan said.
The Iddo link road, he explained, was not originally built alongside the bridge, adding that with an increasing vehicular traffic, the Lagos State Government built it to enable cars and buses pass through the bridge to the Island.
For safety, he said a barrier would be constructed immediately to prevent vehicles above certain headroom from using the Iddo link road.
Sogbesan warned those staying under the bridge to quit, as a task force will be constituted to dislodge them.
“We are going to evict illegal occupants of our infrastructure. All illegal occupants under this bridge must leave, the abuse on this bridge has to stop. We will start enforcement immediately, we would issue notices and we are going to enforce it. We are going to evict every illegal occupant under the bridge. We don’t want abuses on the bridges again. We must move them out and we are going to collaborate with Lagos State,” Sogbesan said.
Borini Prono Joint Managing Director Gainrranco Albertazzi, who showed reporter the 1958 pictures of the construction of the bridge and its design, said the bridge was not damaged.
“What has been touched is the cover which is of a small thickness which is not too important. More so, this first beam is only carrying the pedestrian lane, it is not carrying any vehicular traffic, so there is no cause for alarm as the bridge’s slab could easily be replaced. It is only the damage done by a vehicle carrying some loads that should not have passed through the bridge, but the main beam is structurally intact,” he explained.
Lagos State Ministry of Transportation Permanent Secretary Dr Taiwo Salaam thanked motorists for their cooperation during the exercise.