Vehicle recovery operation causes heavy gridlock on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

Motorists and commuters experienced hours of heavy traffic on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Wednesday after a vehicle recovery operation near the Kara Bridge axis disrupted traffic flow along the busy highway.

The operation followed a lone-vehicle crash, prompting emergency responders and traffic officials to temporarily halt outbound traffic from Lagos towards Ogun State to safely remove the damaged vehicle from the road.

According to the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), recovery teams were immediately deployed to the scene to clear the wreckage and prevent further accidents.

The temporary closure resulted in a major traffic backlog, with vehicles stretching several kilometres from the Kara Bridge area to Berger and New Garage as commuters remained stranded in slow-moving traffic.

In a traffic update, LASTMA said the restriction was necessary to allow emergency personnel to carry out the recovery operation safely.

“Vehicles were temporarily stopped while the recovery team carried out the necessary operations to clear the accident scene. The traffic backlog stretched to New Garage and beyond, causing delays for motorists travelling towards Ogun State,” the agency stated.

The authority noted that traffic heading out of Lagos towards Ogun State was the worst affected, while motorists travelling into Lagos from the Mowe-Ibafo corridor experienced little or no disruption.

Following the successful evacuation of the crashed vehicle, normal traffic flow gradually resumed along the affected section of the expressway.

LASTMA also disclosed that emergency responders had earlier cleared another obstruction involving a fallen container truck on Carter Bridge, restoring free movement along that corridor.

The agency advised motorists to drive cautiously, maintain safe following distances, avoid reckless lane changes and comply with traffic officials’ directives to reduce the risk of accidents and minimise disruptions on the state’s major highways.