The Nation Newspaper

Tag: BRIDGES

  • Wooden bridges to go in Lagos, says govt

    Wooden bridges to go in Lagos, says govt

    All wooden bridges in riverine areas in Lagos State will soon go, Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure Mr Ganiyu Johnson has said.

    They are to be gradually replaced under a policy adopted by the government, Johnson said at a briefing to commemorate the first anniversary of the Governor Akinwunmi Ambode administration.

    Such areas include parts of Ojo Local Government; Oko-Oloyun in Alimosho and Okota in Oshodi-Isolo Local Government.

    Johnson said the exercise was decided upon following Ambode’s state-wide tour to assess the level of infrastructure and possible rehabilitation.

    Other projects conceived after the tour include the construction of the Ajah flyover and upgrading of the Freedom Road to Admiralty Road in Eti-Osa Local Government Area (LGA); construction of Abule-Egba flyover in Ifako-Ijaye LGA; and rehabilitation and upgrading of strategic arterial and inner roads in Epe.

    Johnson further listed other projects to include the construction of a pedestrian bridge, layby and slip road at Ojodu-Berger Bus Stop on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway; construction of the second Ojota pedestrian bridge; reconstruction of Brown Road, Oshodi and rehabilitation and upgrading of Aiyetoro Road (Section 1) and Ishefun/Camp Davis/New Market road (Section 1), both in Alimosho LGA.

    Similarly, the state is at an advanced stage of signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with a consortium to develop the fourth Mainland Bridge. He explained that the proposed bridge will run from Ajah to Northwest direction towards the lagoon shoreline to Lagos-Ibadan Expressway via Ikorodu. The approximate length of the bridge is 37.9km with a design speed of 140km/h. On completion, the bridge would drastically reduce traffic volume on Eko, Cater and Third Mainland Bridges.

    Johnson captures the importance and value of the project thus: “This lies in its capacity to rapidly decongest the traffic gridlock within the Lekki corridor and redistribute traffic towards Lagos Mainland, which serves to meet increased future road infrastructure demands.”

  • Ogun builds three bridges

    Ogun builds three bridges

    The Ogun State government will build three bridges on Imeko Afon and Agosasa- Ipokia roads.

    These narrow bridges, which had claimed many lives and property over the years, are situated at Odo-Oyo and Afon on Imeko-Afon Road in Imeko-Afon Local Government and at Odo-Oniru in Agosasa, Ipokia Local Government Area.

    Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure Olamilekan Adegbite, who announced this during an inspection of the bridges, said the works are being done by contractors, who are experts in bridge construction.

    Adegbite said Amosun decided to end unnecessary waste of lives and property on the three axes by immediately awarding the contracts and mobilising contractors to sites.

    He added that building the bridges has started in earnest, saying that the bridges would have four carriage lanes each to give enough space for vehicles.

  • Waste on the bridges

    Waste on the bridges

    The pedestrian bridges are gradually becoming a source of mockery for the authorities and residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Once, they were not there, and many residents were hit and killed or injured by motorists while dashing across the highway. Many cried foul, calling on the authorities to build bridges across the roads. Eventually, the bridges were contructed, and good ones at that, but what happened afterwards?

    Residents, it was discovered, still seemed to prefer making the dash to safely taking the bridge steps.

    Now, there is a new worry: not only are the bridges sparingly used, they are steadily becoming refuse dumpsites.

    Maintaining the structures seems to be a problem. Many now say that soon after the administration completes a bridge, it looks the other way, not caring what happens to it.

    The major streets and roads in the city centre actually look relatively clean until you climb some of the bridges.

    Most of them look like a place that refuse retires. It is not that the bridges are unusable as a result of heaps of waste. Sometimes they are swept, but the sweepers do not do a good job and are far from committed to their duties. It looks as if they come to work once or twice a month.

    For instance, a little tour on the Papei Bridge can be quite irritating for someone with a light stomach. The bridge is so dirty. Because of the rains, refuse seems to decompose much faster on the bridges and stick to its floor like a second skin and the fact that it is not always swept makes it so irritating. Many people rather run across the highway than take the irritating steps.

    The Second Gate/NNPC Junction Bridge in Kubwa is another untidy sight. Residents of Kubwa have become accustomed to the dirt especially since the bridge is the busiest overhead bridge in the whole of Kubwa but recently, a popular beggar on the bridge has taken it upon himself to sweep it daily.

    This beggar who is crippled and can only navigate on a small board with wheels, sweeps the whole bridge every morning before settling down to his usual spot to beg for alms. Residents mostly appreciate the gestures and can be seen giving him money as they walk past every morning.

    Even though he refused giving The Nation his name, he said, “I don’t like being in a dirty environment, since they are not ready to sweep it and this is where I stay, I decided to always sweep it every morning before settling for the days business.”

    Mrs Sarah, a resident of Kubwa and ardent user of the bridge said, “what he does is really impressive, I used to be really apprehensive about taking the bridge because I hate dirt, especially those that have been around for a while, in fact, sometimes back, someone excreted on the bridge, just next to the stairs, so that you see it and will have to avoid matching it as you climb the bridge.

    “You will not believe that thing stayed there and took weeks until it dried up and disappear on its own because no one bothered to sweep it away. I like that he is keeping the bridge clean and I often give him the little change i have when i walk by as a reward for his foresight and hardwork, especially knowing how difficult it must be for him being handicapped.”

    The Gwarimpa Bridge is another example of the dirtiest bridges. It is a known and popular alternative market on the Kubwa express and always busy with people buying and selling and pedestrians trying to cross to the other side of the road. The traders sweep refuse aside and recently this traders have devised a way of packing the refuse into sacks and hanging it on the rail, so it dangles at a slight platform on the bridge that could tilt dangerously and even fall onto oncoming vehicles.

    As it is typical with most Nigerians, the traders try to keep the position where they sell clean so you find them sweeping refuse from the part of the bridge that they are using and dumping it on the staircases as well, sometimes it can get so messy that passerby’s will have to carefully pick their ways through the refuse to avoid falling down.

    When asked, one of the traders explains, “This is where we sell our market and get money to eat so we try to keep it as clean as possible; the government does not always care about sweeping the bridge so everybody sweeps in front of his place and we dump it on the stairs and when they get ready and feel like sweeping it, they come and sweep it.”

    These days unfortunately most of the pedestrian users will observe that the bridge is no longer just a means of crossing the road but has turned into a market that can sometimes get annoying with the way buyers and sellers sometimes block the road without a care, this is common around the Banex, Nicon, Gwarimpa, Galadima and as far as the Dei-Dei junctions with people not only having to contend with the market at the Dei-Dei junction but the ever presents thugs and drugs users always hanging around.

    Another common scene on the Abuja bridges are the sites for beggars who can sometimes get pushy or aggressive with people who fail to give them money. It is even worst at the Maraba Bridge although technically Maraba is not in Abuja. Here, the female beggars who cluster on the steps cannot not only touch people in the process of begging but also grab.

    One might say that those bridges are a bit outside the city centre and might be expected to be neglected but even those in the centre like Banex and Nicon junctions for instance are not always kept clean, they are not left out in the mess even though it is not always as messy as those outside the city centre.

    The Nicon and Banex bridges are amongst the latest over head bridges recently constructed but to be honest, that of Banex for instance looks like it is a thousand years old mostly because even an amateur or architectural illiterate will know that it was done poorly, it honestly looks like the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) gave the job out to someone that was not in the mood of doing a good job.

    The most difficult bridge to climb in Abuja is the Banex bridge, it was steps are constructed in a way that as a person climbs, the person will have to bend is body slightly and probably hold unto the rail to keep from falling backwards. The floor of the bridge from day one after it was ready for use looked like a bridge that its floor was never plastered and when climbing the bridge and observant person will be able to detect holes and cracks when the bridge is actually less than 6 months old.

    So climbing the bridge is so tasking and stressful that most residents only take it because of the barricades constructed to avoid people running across the road and some stubborn residents still find a way to run across the road with all the barricades.

    Rhoda Daniel, a resident of Kubwa who spoke on the state of the Banex bridge said, “I honestly don’t know what they did on this bridge to claim that they have worked, if you check, you will probably realise that they will claim to have used so much money to construct this bridge that looks like it might crumble any day, sometimes it is so disgusting walking on this bridge.

    “they do not send their people to check on it and the beggar that sits on the stairs sometimes makes her daughter defecate down the stairs, not even inside the bush but you will see the child clearly defecating by the stairs where if someone is not watchful when trying to climb the bridge, he might match it.

    “If she knows that she can get severely punished for it, i am sure that the beggar will not allow her daughter do it but she does not care because it seems like no one else cares.”

    So the truth is that when residents curse and abuse pedestrians for not taking the bridges, this can be seen as a reason for the failure of most people preferring to run across the road even though this excuses or reasons may honestly not be enough for residents to risk their lives since the bridges are not places in which they are expected to sit and relax but dash across to their more important business.

    Authorities of the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) could not be reached for comments on the state of the bridges as at when contacted and an SMS to them was not replied as well.

     

  • Oyo rebuilds bridges

    Oyo rebuilds bridges

    Three years after an early evening downpour triggered a devastating flood in Ibadan and some other communities in Oyo State, killing no fewer than 100 residents and destroying infrastructure, the state government has rebuilt some of the damaged bridges, bringing great relief to motorists and residents of the affected areas. BISI OLADELE reports.

    August 26, 2011 was a day nobody in Ibadan and some communities outside the Oyo State capital would forget in a hurry.

    Just as it was in August 1980 with the Omiyale flood disaster, the heavens opened on the ancient city on that day and rained sorrows, tears and blood.

    At the end of over seven-hour downpour which triggered heavy flooding particularly, in Ibadan, many people were swept away along with several bridges and vehicles.

    The rain had started like a drizzle. It showered and gradually developed into a torrent pouring for several hours, trapping many commuters, shop owners and occupants of some building either constructed near flood planes or standing right on flood paths.

    According to the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, the rain measured 187.5mm and lasted for seven and a half hours.

    In Ibadan, the areas flooded include Onipepeye, Odo-Ona Elewe, Odo Ona Apata, NIHORT, Ijokodo, Sango, Apete, Ajibode, Orogun, Agbowo, old Bodija, Ikolaba, The Polytechnic, Ibadan, Fatusi Ogbere, Olodo Kumapayi, University of Ibadan, Eleyele Waterworks and Oluyole Estate. A few bridges were also washed away in Oyo town.

    According to the Special Adviser to Governor Abiola Ajimobi on Media, Dr Festus Adedayo, the flood was caused by several factors including indiscriminate dumping of refuse into drainages, development of structures along flood plains, climate change and effects of global warming.

    Adedayo recalled that the government immediately after the havoc ordered weekly environmental sanitation exercise to aid cleaning of the city. He also disclosed that government took several other actions to mitigate the effects of the flood and prevent a recurrence.  Apart from the palliatives to the victims, concrete steps were taken by government to reconstruct the damaged bridges to bring relief to both the residents and motorists in the affected areas.

    Besides, the government constructed temporary pedestrian bridges to reconnect cut-off communities in Apete and Ayegun communities, cleared blocked drains, expanded and de-silted streams like the Ona River that runs through the metropolis.

    Adedayo added that “contracts were awarded for the reconstruction of the major bridges and roads affected during the flood and many of them have been completed or at advanced stages of completion.” The bridges include the ones at “Apete, Secretariat-Bodija, Olomi, Ogbere. Works have also been completed on damaged bridges and roads such as Agbongbon Bridge, Simeon Adebo\Davies Hotel/Blessed Water Road, Simeon Adebo/Adeyi, Awolowo Road,  Orita Aperin/Omowumi/Olorunsogo Bridge,  Failed portion opposite Orogun Junction, along U.I/Ojoo Road,  Mokola/Cele/Barrack Junction Road/Bridge,  Salami Estate/Bodija Road, Ona River at Olubadan Avenue, Oluyole Estate.”

    The state’s spokesman also added that government embarked on demolition of structures erected on statutory set-backs, pointing out that over 60 houses on flood plains have been demolished and that more are still slated for demolition.

    When The Nation went round the city, so many of the bridges have been reconstructed while pedestrian bridges have been built in areas where new bridges are being built or where the problem is less severe.

    The state government disclosed that due to heavy financial burden of reconstructing the bridges and other infrastructures, it started with the most critical ones. These include the multi-million naira Bodija Bridge christened ‘Restoration Bridge’, Ayeye Bridge, Ogbere Babanla Bridge, Olunde Bridge and the Simeon Adebo/Adeyi Bridge, among others.

    The Ogbere Babanla bridge was one of the bridges whose collapse brought untold hardship to residents of the area. The densely populated area, which extends to Ibadan airport was almost practically cut off from the rest of the city but for the Old Ife Road route which served as a painful escape route. Commercial bus drivers on the route who had no other route to ply, suffered the bridge collapse most.

    The Chairman, National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Ogbere branch, Alhaji Rafiu Mustapha told The Nation that commercial drivers on the route went on forced holiday immediately after the bridge collapsed. He recalled that even in the period of the old bridge, residents and drivers used to face hectic time navigating through the bridge whenever it rained because flood used to overflow the bridge.

    He said: “It was a big problem for us because all our business went down, and we were not having income like before. When the bridge collapsed during the Ramadan season three years ago, we could not go home that day and had to sleep inside this shop. It was in my presence that three people were swept away by the flood on the bridge.

    “The old bridge was small and low. Every little rain led to flood that used to cover the bridge, thereby creating heavy traffic on the route.”

    But Alhaji Mustapha is very happy with the new bridge constructed by the state government.

    “We are grateful to Governor Abiola Ajimobi because he is a listening governor.  Despite the fact that this road is a federal road, immediately he heard about the collapsed bridge, they started work on it and since its completion we have not heard of flood sweeping anybody away again.

    “The bridge is of high standard when compared to the former one. The difference between the former one and this one is that this new one is very tall and the river has also been dredged. Before, flood used to overflow the former bridge but now it doesn’t and flood doesn’t sweep people away again.

    “The new bridge has brought about a great relief to us and now our businesses are moving on smoothly. ýWe are very grateful to the Oyo State Government. We are also using this medium to appeal to them to assist us to rehabilitate this road down to Idi-Obi.”

    At Bodija, where the Restoration Bridge, is sitting strong, residents applauded government’s efforts, saying it has improved economic activities in the area in a large measure.

    On the former bridge, a shop owner at the nearby shopping complex Mr Michael Ajibade, said: “The former bridge was nothing to write home about. Anytime it rained heavily, people around were, often times, in a big problem because flood would definitely enter their compounds and destroy their property. Flood also swept cars off the road into the stream. Flood used to overflow the bridge. Often times, people found alternative routes.”

    Ajibade said the new bridge is a very strong one with good height which makes it difficult for flood to overflow it.

    “The new bridge has eased traffic and since the construction of the bridge we have not experienced such problem as we use to experience. Since there is free flow of traffic, there have been changes. I can say that in the days of the other bridge people found it difficult to drive into the complex but now since the road is good the excuse is no more there. The traffic towards this end is heavy which has affected the business positively.” He said.

    The Chairman, Ajibode Unit of the NURTW, Mr Muritala Isola, also explained that the old bridge was a disaster. He recalled times when they had to stay at home for days, and even up to one month when flood overran the old bridge.

    “The old bridge used to give us loads of problems every time it rained twice or more successively. Both vehicles and commercial motorcycles would be unable to pass. By this, we would stay at home until the flood goes down. There was a time we stayed at home for one month when it rained for days non-stop. It was terrible.

    But residents used alternative routes inside the University of Ibadan. Those with cars used to take the Apete route because the bridge was still good then.

    “But now we are enjoying the bridge. The government constructed a very solid bridge and it is so tall, no flood can overrun it. We really commend them. The new bridge now enhances our operations as all commercial drivers now drive freely. We are reaping the full potential of the route. We thank the government for this good job.”

    In Oyo town, Alaadorin and Sanga bridges have been reconstructed while Osoro bridge was also reconstructed in Saki.

    Overall, the reconstructed bridges have breathed life back to economic activities in all the affected areas while government continues efforts to attend to the rest.

    To prevent a recurrence of the tragedy, Adedayo said enforcement of rules and regulations on compliance with environment laws was being vigorously pursued.

    Taking proactive measures to forestall a recurrence, he said: “Government came back aftermath that devastating flood to the drawing table. It immediately set up a panel to look into the overt and covert causes of the flood, with a view to recommending appropriate solutions. That panel came out with the list of a total of about 2500 houses which it recommended for demolition. But after a critical look by government, being a humane one, the number was reviewed downwards, with the belief that massive dredging of rivers and streams, as well as construction of bridges across the state would ameliorate the situation. This we did and we thank God that the result is what we have now – a great reduction in the destructive powers of the flood.

    “Government also engaged in massive sensitization measures, especially with the residents and stakeholders of flood-prone areas on one-on-one basis, as well as on the radio and television.

    Part of the pro-active measures government took was to work in partnership with the World Bank.

    “Because the task of reconstructing these bridges is so massive and is beyond the state government alone, immediately after the 2011flood, the governor met with officials of the World Bank upon which the bank sent its representatives to the state for an assessment. The report has culminated in the bank, with the support of the Federal Ministry of Finance, agreeing in principle to grant the state government emergency relief. Only recently, the World Bank approved the sum of $200 million for the construction of some bridges and roads damaged during the flood.

    Part of the fund is to channelize the 30km Ona River and complete the Upper Ogunpa River, along with helping solve the state waste management challenges, from storage, collection, transportation to disposal sites, so as to turn them into sanitary landfills and to eventually begin a waste-to-wealth programme.  An absence of these efforts has often been a major cause of flood disasters.

    “Another part of the government’s efforts at ensuring that the flood disaster of last year does not reoccur was to also partner with the World Bank on the Eleyele Dam. The report, which came out after this partnership, discovered that the Eleyele Dam had not been silted in its 47 years of existence.

    Immediately after the 2011 flood, Governor Ajimobi had to urgently rush to the World Bank office in Abuja, as a result of the predicted heavy rainfall. He further made a presentation to World Bank officials in Washington through teleconferencing in Abuja to show the emergency nature of the Eleyele Dam. This led to the palliative measures taken by the state government in the reconstruction of Eleyele Dam’s broken slabs. Perhaps, if this had not been done today, the flooding situation would have been more chaotic.

    Even though flooding is a natural occurrence, the Oyo government has done every humanly possible thing to ensure that there is no reoccurrence of flood disaster in the state. It is however not resting on its oars.”

     

  • Deaths under pedestrian bridges

    Deaths under pedestrian bridges

    The route to safety is just overhead and does not take more than a few minutes, but the pedestrians prefer to dash across the expressway. They shun the overhead bridge. Many have died because of this negligence, if not foolhardiness.

    That is why residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) want more pedestrians built.

    The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has obliged and started building more pedestrian bridges to avoid the increasing deaths on the fast lane.

    Yielding to the cry of residents, the FCT Administration awarded contracts for the construction of pedestrian bridges at strategic locations across the city.

    With this development, the administration expected the residents and road users to make use of these bridges. Unfortunately, despite making these bridges available, residents, in total disregard for the foot bridges provided by government for the safety of lives of citizens, have continued to cross the ever-busy highways.

    After this, to instill the habit of using the bridges into residents, the administration decided to use barbed wire fencing to demarcate the lanes and to prevent people from crossing.

    Despite this move, our reporter observed that residents destroy some of the barbed wire fences just to enable them to cross the expressway, abandoning the footbridges provided for their safety.

    Moved by this unsavoury situation, some concerned residents have called for the creation of mobile courts in order to prosecute offenders, even as others suggested that Abuja city should adopt what is obtainable in Lagos to reduce the rate of casualty.

    Security agents have, in the past, disclosed that running across the road while trying to cross the barricade was a serious traffic offence but cases of such still persist.

    A security agent who didn’t want his name in print because he was not competent to comment on the issue said: “Where there are pedestrian bridges, we expect that people should make use of such facility and be safety conscious. Running across the road is a very serious traffic offence because it can lead to accidents and loss of lives.”

    Some of the places where these bridges are situated in Abuja are Mabushi/ Nnamdi Azikiwe Expressway Junction, Area 1/Area Three Junctions and the Wuye/Wuse Junction and Kubwa Expressway, among others.

    Unfortunately, the huge amount of money invested in the construction of these pedestrian bridges appears to be a waste as many of them are hardly used by pedestrians, thereby defeating the purpose for which they were constructed.

    Today, people are only seen using the pedestrian bridges as location for brisk business where they sell hand-me-down clothes, belt, shoes, wallet, movies; rechargeable lamps, under wears, books, fruits, plantain chips, groundnuts and other items.

    Also, beggars have taken over some of the bridges as points to wait for kind-hearted passersby to give them money.

    Some residents who spoke to our reporter advanced some reasons for preferring to cross the road to using the pedestrian bridges.

    Sule Idris, a road side seller admitted that the rate of accidents on the highway was alarming, a situation which he blamed on the failure of security agencies to arrest defaulters.

    He said: “Failure of the residents to use the foot bridges should be blamed on security agencies that cannot enforce the law prohibiting people from crossing the expressway at locations where pedestrian bridges were provided. If the security agents will arrest defaulters, I think people will start using pedestrian bridges.

    “Apart from neglecting the foot bridges, there are few pedestrian bridges in the FCT. We need more foot bridges because of the size of the roads.

    “Crossing the expressway is shorter and faster than using the pedestrian bridge which happens to be too stressful,” Taiwo, another resident said.

    A resident of Kubwa, Mr. Soji Daniel said the absence of mobile courts along the highways, especially the ones close to the pedestrian bridges, would instill fears, even as it will make residents imbibe the culture of using the foot bridges.

    Mrs. Ijeoma Okoye, who our reporter met after she crossed to the other side of the road at NICON Junction said: “I know that it is dangerous to cross the expressway the way I just did but truth be told, I am scared of height. It makes me feel dizzy. So, instead of climbing the bridges, I prefer crossing the road, but I have to watch carefully before doing so.”

    Another respondent, Olaiya Thomas said: “The problem with some of these bridges is that they are too far from most junctions. And when one considers the stress associated with climbing the bridges which obviously has stairs, one will just take the risk and cross the expressway.

    On his part, Mohammed Bashir said: “People are not using the pedestrian bridges built at some locations in the city out of fear of being attacked by hoodlums.

    He added: “My sister came back home lamenting how her bag was snatched from her on the bridge. She tried to be law-abiding and used the bridge instead of doing what others did. And what did she get in return?

    “Even if she shouted for help, before help comes, the person who snatched her bag would have escaped. So, I advised her to join others crossing the expressway to avoid such situation repeating itself. I thank God it was only her bag. It could be worse.”

    At Gwarinpa Junction, Madam Beatrice said she avoids using the bridge because it will make people assume that she went to buy something on the bridge which hawkers and traders have turned into market.

    A trader on one of the bridges, Chidi explained that trading on the bridge provides him opportunity to escape arrest by task force operatives, adding that many petty traders could not afford the high fares charged for shops in the FCT markets.

    He said: “In Abuja, some of us cannot afford to pay for shops and at places like this which are used very well by residents, market moves better because people must pass here. Since our own products are cheaper than what they will get in the markets, customers will always patronise us.”

    Besides heavy human traffic situation generated by the activities of marketers on the bridges, there are several other reasons for residents not making use of the pedestrian bridges.

    Some mentioned the long distances of the bridges to the designated bus stops as their reasons for not using them.

    As reasonable as some of these excuses might sound, however, it cannot justify the non- use of the bridges, especially when compared with the dangers associated with crossing the ever-busy highways.

    In the face of this, some residents opined that security agencies should arrest and prosecute those who still cross the expressway, adding that it will serve as a lesson for others, even as it will go a long way to reducing the rate of accidents and deaths on our highways.

    Mr. Rasheed, who our reporter met in Area Three Junction Garki said: “The inability of security agents to arrest defaulters will continue to encourage people to cross the roads instead of making use of the pedestrian bridges for their safety. Many have died and some might still die as a result of their failure to use the pedestrian bridge.”

    He added that there is need for the FCT Administration to enlighten residents on the importance of pedestrian bridges and the hazards of crossing the expressways.

    A security agent who spoke to our reporter in confidence said: “The reasons advanced by pedestrians are not enough to risk their lives while crossing the road.

    They are expected to use it because it is safer than to risk their lives.

    Also commenting on the issue, an officer with the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) said: “The commission has been carrying out regular intensive public enlightenment campaign on the need for pedestrians to make use of the foot bridges. A patrol team is stationed at some bridges to ensure compliance, but even with the presence of our officials, some pedestrians still play smart to cross the road.”

  • Bridges and cost of democracy

    On January 4, 1966, the then Prime Minister Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa(1912-1966) commissioned the Onitsha/AsabaBridge popularly called the Niger Bridge. It was his last engagement outside Lagos.

    The bridge which was built by the British, cost £5millions at that time. The then Prime Minister was accompanied to the commissioning ceremony by the then Federal Minister of Works and Survey, Alhaji Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari (90) and the then Premier of Mid-Western Region, Chief Dennis ChukwudiOsadebeh (1911-1994) a poet and journalist who was also from Asaba.

    The then Premier of Eastern Nigeria, Dr. Michael Iheonkura Okpara (1920-1984) who was from Umuahia in the present Abia State and who at 39 was the youngest premier at that time, boycotted the ceremony. The ceremonial governor of Eastern Nigeria at that time, Dr. Akanu Ibiam(1906-1995) from Uwanna, Afikpo, in the present day Ebonyi State also boycotted the ceremony. There was a political crisis at that time between NPC and UPGA. The three men, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, Chief Osadebe and other officials paid toll on the bridge. Eleven days later, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was murdered.

    Now 48 years after the ceremony, the President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has flagged off the construction of another second bridge to link Asaba with Onitsha. The second bridge is to cost N200 billion and would be constructed by Julius Berger/AIMS Consortium under the Design, Finance, Build, Operate and Transfer Model. The design alone cost N325million under the Public Private Partnership Policy.

    The Niger Bridge has obviously become old with frequent complaints by motorists and experts who believe that regular vehicular traffics and heavy duty trucks amongst others and indeed old age now causes the bridge to become a trap. Most of the nuts and bolts used by the British colonial government cannot be found anywhere in the world because they have become obsolete.

    That another second bridge is being constructed 48 years after, speaks volumes about our National Planning. Asaba and Onitsha are not just ordinary cities. Onitsha became an important trading port for the Royal Niger Company in the mid-1850s following the abolition of slavery and with the development of the steam engine when Europeans were able to move into the hinterland trade in palm kernels and palm oil which was going on the coast of Bight of Biafra since 12th century was now moved upwards and other cash crops also boomed around this river port in the 19th century.

    Onitsha has become today a big commercial, educational and religious centre. It ranks with Lagos, Port-Harcourt and Kano as commercial nerve centres of Nigeria. Regrettably Onitsha is a textbook example of the perils of urbanisation without planning for public services. It can boast of  a brewery valued at $110 million, a Catholic Cathedral as large as the one in the Vatican in Rome, and an Anglican Church as beautiful as that of my church, Cathedral Church of Christ, Marina, Lagos. There is a reason for that. The Anglican was the first missionary in Onitsha in 1857. Later came the Catholics in 1884. As of today there is a competition for audience between the Catholics and the Anglican in Onitsha.

    When General Ibrahim Babangida (73) created Delta State – the BIG HEART on August 27, 1991 and named Asaba the capital, there were demonstrations in some part of Delta State. He was alleged to be partisan because his wife Maryam Babangida(1948-2009) was from Asaba. Only General Babangida can defend himself on that. But if a wife cannot influence certain decisions of her husband, not all decisions, then that wife is not fit to be a partner in a marriage.

    Of all the powers in the world none is more powerful than pillow talk, that is, night talk between a wife and a husband. The power of a woman is unlimited. That is the way it has been, and that is the way it will continue to be. And as we all know, General Babangida was a loving husband until his wife died in a Los Angeles hospital, California on December 27, 2009. As for Asaba, it is not just a city. The city has been important long before Maryam Babangida was born. As a matter of fact the naming of Asaba as Delta State capital has today become a big burden to the good and highly industrialised people of Anioma with nine local governments out of 25, in their quest to have their child as governor of Delta State. It is to be hoped that one day Asaba will be accepted by all and sundry in Delta state, as their own state capital.

    Asaba is strategically located on a hill at the Western edge of the River Niger. The historic River Niger is a trans-African link beginning from western, eastern and northern Nigeria through the River Niger from the north and via the Asaba Niger Bridge, an east-west link and a Nigeria landmark. Asaba lies approximately six degrees north of the equator and about the same distance east of the meridian; about 100 miles north of where the River Niger flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Asaba occupies an area of about 300 square kilometres. It maintains an average tropical temperature of 90 degrees during the dry season and an average fertile rainfall of six inches during the rainy season.

    Asaba was once the colonial capital of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate. It was founded in 1884. It hosted the Royal Niger Company, which the British authorities set up to stimulate trade and the exportation of goods to England. That company has grown today into the UAC Nigeria PLC. Its traditional ruler is the Asagba, Dr. Joseph Chike Edozien of American education background.

    Be that as it is, we have not given special favours to the people of Asaba and Onitsha or indeed the whole of South-east and South-south, if we today construct a second bridge to link Onitsha and Asaba. By now there should have been three bridges on that river. Also by now we should have started the construction of a standard bridge to link Agenebode in Edo state to Idah in Kogi State, two towns overlooking each other. Vis-à-vis there should have been four bridges across Lokoja and same to Jebba. If anything happens to the Jebba and Lokoja bridges, the North will be cut off from the South.

    We can build bridges, construct roads, hospitals and many more if we want to and that is if we reduce the cost of governance.

    Our own democracy must rank one of the most extravagant and exorbitant democracy in the world. Our economy cannot sustain it any longer. If we are to uphold and endure this democracy then we have to sacrifice the execution of capital projects inclusive of construction of bridges. Our prodigal and spendthrift attitude is killing the economy and hurting our chance of survival. Imagine how much we are spending on the National Assembly, National Conference, Presidential fleet, seminars, oil subsidies, presidential and gubernatorial aides, etc.

    Apart from insurgency which we can’t find solution to in spite of external help, the greatest danger to our democracy is the high cost of governance. We can’t continue this way any longer.

    Charles Loius Secondant, the Baron de Montesquieu wrote that “the deterioration of every government begins with the decay of the principles on which it was founded”, while Confucius wrote” In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of”.

     

    • Teniola, a former director at the presidency lives in Lagos.

  • Bridges and road crashes

    Bridges and road crashes

    Dynamism or situational management is a very vital key in every sphere of life. As it was in the beginning, so it is now and so shall it be forever, is a divine order because every work of God is perfectly done, needing no amendment in any form.

    However, in the case of the works of human beings, there is a need for regular evaluation to know the areas that need to be adjusted to prevent avoidable consequences.

    I took a fact-finding trip on the Shagamu – Benin road recently to assess the road safety situation. My findings were disheartening.

    I saw 16 road accident cases on this same road alone. Eight of the accidents resulted from over-speeding on slippery road because of the rainfall of that day. Three cases were caused by wrong overtaking because of road diversions.

    Four of the cases happened the previous night as a result of the factors associated with night driving.

    The last and most pathetic case which is the reason for this article was caused by construction lapses. An articulated vehicle had a head – on collision with a passenger bus on a bridge. The bus somersaulted and hung in between the bridge and the river thereby emptying virtually all the passengers and luggages into the river. I could not ascertain if any of the passengers that fell into the river survived.

    Taking a look at the bridge, the side rails are no more there not because they were removed by vandals but because of incessant accidents on the bridge which has destroyed the rails.

    The main cause of the accident was the unevenness of the road at the beginning and the end of the bridge which always throw up vehicles that pass the road with speed.

    This usually result to a loss of control of vehicles. The side rails are tiny pipes, not concrete. These two vehicles in this case drove in the opposite direction on the same lane because of diversion. The uneven part of the bridge threw up the bus thereby making the driver to lose control of the vehicle and hit the on – coming articulated vehicle which pushed the bus to the weak side rails which was not strong enough to prevent the bus from falling into the river.

    There are many bridges on the shagamu – Benin road without rails at all. The case of the four Igbinedion university lecturers whose vehicle fell into river is still very fresh.

    Reports in the Punch Newspaper September 11, 2012 revealed that on the next day after my research trip on shagamu – Benin expressway (Sunday), 11 people died in two auto crashes.

    The main reason for writing this report is to recommend that the construction companies should know that the volume of traffic on roads today is by far different from what it used to be in the 70s and in the 80’s when these bridges were constructed. They should also know that some vandals have discovered alternative use of the aluminum rails which has rendered its use in road construction unnecessary in Nigeria.

    Rather, concrete walls should be used to replace the aluminum rails on bridges. They are stronger and will not be tampered with by the vandals.

    Government ministries and agencies responsible for road construction and monitoring should also take into cognizance the relevance of durable road and furnitures. The existing bridges should be properly fortified against road crashes. More attention should be paid to prevention rather than waiting for the harm to be done before embarking on fire brigade system.

    There should also be adequate and appropriate traffic signs and road markings to warn the drivers of the impending dangers on the roads.

    It is also expedient that drivers must always adjust their speed according to the conditions of the road. Drivers must slow down when approaching a bridge.

    All stakeholders must take appropriate and selfless actions to drastically stem the rising rate of road crashes.

    Prevention is better and cheaper than cure.

     

  • World Bank approves $10m to build pedestrian bridges

    The Minister of Works and Housing, Mike Onolememen, yesterday said World Bank has approved $10 million for four pedestrian bridges in Abuja.

    He spoke at the approval of six pedestrian bridges in Abuja.

    According to him, the building of the bridges is an integral part of the road safety components of the federal road development project.

    He said: “The objective of the road safety components of the federal road development project is to improve safety level on the roads.

    “It is in realisation of this that the World Bank approved $10 million for the building of four pedestrian bridges on some selected roads in Abuja.

    “The collaboration between the World Bank and the Federal Government in financing this project at a ratio of 9-1 under the road sector development team of the Ministry of Works is imperative and represents the way forward for critical infrastructures in line with the government’s policy of promoting partnership with multi-lateral and private sector financiers.

    “The six bridges in phase one and two were awarded by the government to Messrs Dutum Company Ltd, Rural Steel Bridging Ltd and Enerco Nigeria Ltd with a contract period of six months each.

    “This is to reduce fatalities on Nigerian roads as part of the safe road corridor concept. Our determination cannot be compromised because the lives of our citizens crossing these roads are vital to our socio-economic renewal and national transformation.

    “It is gratifying to note that this project, when completed, will improve the safe crossing movement of people in a manner that will ensure the achievement of our common objective of combining efforts and resources to address issues on road safety in Nigeria and to save lives.

    “In the first phase of the exercise, we are building pedestrian bridges in the following locations with high pedestrian traffic: Nnamdi Azikiwe Expressway by Tafawa Balewa Way, Old Secretariat Junction and Nnamdi Azikiwe Expressway by Olusegun Obasanjo Way, Wuye Junction.

    “Others are, Nnamdi Azikiwe Expressway by Ahmadu Bello Way, Banex Junction; Nnamdi Azikiwe Expressway by Shehu Shagari Way, Nicon Junction; Shehu Yar’Adua Way by Okonjo Iweala Way, VIO Mabushi Junction and Shehu Yar’Adua Way by Ladi Kwali Way, Sheraton Junction.”