LSPWC boss to Lagosians: take ownership of roads

Byy Okwy Iroegbu­Chikezie

Lagosians have been urged to take care of the roads in their  areas.

The General Manager, Lagos State Public Works Corporation (LSPWC), Olufemi Daramola, an engineer, made the appeal at a briefing.

According to Daramola, maintenance  carried out by the agency were threatened by some negative activities of the public such as pouring oil by mechanics and other negative attitudes.

To address the situation, he said the corporation is ‘’reinvigorating its advocacy campaign to sensitise the public man-made causes of road damage with a view to inspiring the people to take ownership of the roads’’.

‘’Habits such as burning of items on the road, discharge of waste water on the road, removal of manhole covers, excessive axle load, cooking on roads, indiscriminate cutting of roads and dumping of refuse in drains are all part of reasons why roads cannot last their supposed lifespan,’ she said’.

He pledged that some roads such as  Fatai Atere, Cappa, Fagba, and Osolo Way would receive attention as they progress.

Read Also: Two Years On: Gov. Sanwo-Olu’s scorecard, by far a pass mark

The GM hinted that his agency has evolved a culture of working round the clock, adding that night operations had become permanent features of its modus operandu.

On the impact  of rain, he said though  the weather has some impact on road maintenance, the corporation is prepared to take advantage of dry periods in-between to carry out maintenance.

He said weather forecast were  considered in planning work schedules while efforts were concentrated on cold mix asphalt to address pot-holes.

He pledged that the agency would continue to support the corporation to rapidly attack road defects, especially on strategic roads with high vehicular movement where pot holes and failed sections slow down movement, thereby impacting negatively on economic and social activities in the state.

For this reason, he added, the agency has sustained its effort to provide various forms of interventions in combating road defects which includes palliative works, routine maintenance and total rehabilitation.

He added: “The corporation has worked on a total of 385 roads across the state from January 2021 till date. Among the 385 roads, 100 strategic roads have been rehabilitated, while routine maintenance was carried out on over 268 roads and 17 roads were maintained using palliative approaches. The corporation hopes to work on additional 400 roads before the year ends.’’

The strategic roads done so far include: Aye/Isolo, Mushin-Isolo Local Government Area, Ileshomi Street, Oshodi LGA, Ado Badore, Eti-Osa LGA, Dailey Street, Shomolu LGA, Odogbolu Street, Surulere LGA, Keffi Street, Obalende, Lagos Island LGA.

Others are  Jakande Estate Road, Alimosho LGA, Afolabi Street, Ikotun, Alimosho LGA, Old Otta Road, Powerline Junction, Orile Agege LGA and Etunreren Street, Ikorodu Samuel Ayetutu.