Federal Government says it is carrying out repairs and rehabilitation intervention on 24,000 km roads nationwide to ensure ease of traffic and movement of goods and services during the yuletide.
Mr Adedamola Kuti, the Director, Highway South-South, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, (FMWH), made this known on Friday during the Annual Public Sensitisation on Ember Months in Abuja.
The sensitisation is to highlight all the activities proposed and being undertaken by the ministry and the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to improve the experience of road users during the yuletide season.
Kuti, giving an update on the activities of the ministry for the yuletide said the ministry had 24,000 km of major repair and rehabilitation of roads.
“We have all together 24000 km. Major repair works, major rehabilitation and special repairs. We have at least 156 roads, totalling about N97 billion.
“We have identified them along the major alignment of A1 to A9 routes, we are specifically restricted ourselves to A1-A6; that’s the North-South bank and then the east to west.
“A1 is starting from Lagos. Supposed to start from the port, but we are starting from the Lagos-Ibadan expressway. Dual carriage way starts from Oyo-Ogbomosho road.
“Working on the Warri-Benin road and continues towards Benin-Auchi road. Lokoja to Zuba and from Zuba – Kaduna-Zaria-Kano, there’s a major work going on there by Julius Berger and then off to Kano-Daura.’’
Kuti said that other roads receiving intervention are Aba-Owerri road, Aba-Umuahia up to the Enugu State border and Makurdi – Akwanga-Lafia Road.
“And from Jos to Bauchi to Potiskum is in fairly good condition and from Potiskum to Maiduguri, already completed and commissioned.
“From Jos to Bauchi to Potiskum is in fairly good condition and from Potiskum to Maiduguri, already completed and commissioned.
“The strength between Otukpo-Otukpa- Enugu, that is bad contractors will soon be mobilised to start rehabilitation there to make room for enjoyable travel experience for those traveling through his route to the east,’’ Kuti said.
The Director Overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Mr Uzo Chukwuwike, speaking further on the efforts of the government to provide infrastructure for citizens said government was doing all it could in that regard.
“The ministry always anticipate that there would be massive movement of goods and services in both directions nationwide.
“We always gather like this to brief the public and road users on where we have hiccups before what we have done and what they should expect.
“We also plan to collect data so that we can get to know where they spend longer journey hours before what is their experience now so that we know.’’
Explaining about the alternative funding for the roads said SUKUK fund had brought about enhanced funding.
He said this had helped to complete two sections of Kano-Maiduguri road which would have still been ongoing if they had relied on budget allocation.
“We also have completed the Ikom bridge, which would have been an impediment, which was affecting conveying goods from Calabar port to the north eastern part of the country.
“So far, we have got the notice from the Debt Management Office this year’s SUKUK; we have not yet applied to them to know which project will be there.
“But definitely it runs across the six geopolitical zones and the money would be evenly distributed to critical roads.
According to him, the tax credit scheme was based on the executive order signed by the president.
He said the scheme had been a successful model for financing road infrastructure.
On his part, Mr Umar Rafindadi, the Managing Director, FERMA said the agency had identified 17 interstate economic routes corridors for repair works of which Abuja-Keffi-Makurdi was part and contractors ready to begin work.
He added that Lagos-Shagamu, Onitsha-Asaba-Enugu-Abakaliki, Benin-Shagamu, Apapa-Oworoisoki, Shagamu interchange in Ogun were all areas that the agency was making interventions for ease of traffic for the Yuletide.
Mr Kumven Rindom, representing the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) said FRSC had conducted a road safety audit of all the critical roads nationwide and the reports would be delivered to the ministry and all stakeholders
“All FRSC commands have been directed to cooperate and collaborate with all stakeholders to implement the presidential directive, which was conveyed from the office of the chief of staff to ease on presidential infrastructural development sites.
“We had a meeting with all the commanding officers; they have come up with their own programmes on what to do to ease traffic having identified flash prone areas and the challenges within those justifications and those areas will be given palliative treatment.
“We have also flagged off the ember months sensitisation in all the states in order to create awareness among the motoring populace with this we hope to have a bunch free traffic movement .
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola had reiterated that that the 2nd Niger Bridge would be opened to traffic to ease of movement for the Yuletide from Dec. 15 to Jan. 15, 2023.
Other stakeholders in attendance that pledge their cooperation and collaboration include FRSC, Nigerian Association of Road Transports, contractors among others.