Lag/Ib expressway: Motorists decry slow pace of reconstruction project

The respondents expressed dissatisfaction over the slow pace of work in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan.

They unanimously said the slow pace of work had recently led to regular crashes at different sections of the expressway.

The road users called on the Federal Government (FG) to prevail on the construction company, Reynold Construction Company (RCC), to expedite action on the project.

NAN recalls that 16 people died in an accident involving multiple vehicles at the Agbowo-Ojoo section of the road on Tuesday.

According to the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), 17 other people sustained varying degrees of injuries in the crash of four vehicles.

FRSC attributed the cause of the accident to the brake failure of a MACK truck, which, consequently, collided with the other vehicles.

A witness account said the obstruction of one side of the road by RCC made the truck collide with oncoming vehicles.

A taxi driver plying the Iwo Road-Ojoo route, Mr Ezekiel Ayoade, lamented the alleged nonchalant attitude of the construction company.

Ayoade said motorists plying the road were always at God’s mercy as they face dangers daily, particularly at the Agbowo-Ojoo section of the road.

According to Alhaji Saheed Olumore, a commercial driver plying Ibadan-Ilorin, the delayed completion of the road is not encouraging.

“The FG should prevail on the contractor to complete the remaining section on time; people die weekly on the road.

“The government shouldn’t wait until an important personality dies before realising the section of the road is claiming lives,” Olumore said.

Another road user, Caleb Ajayi, says the people have had enough.

“It is high time the government intervened in road users’ plights because we can’t fold our arms while our people die prematurely due to the negligence of a few individuals.

“The Minister of Works, David Umahi, should summon RCC to explain what is delaying the completion of the road despite assurances to complete it in Jan. 2024,” said Ajayi.

Meanwhile, a staff member of RCC, who pleaded anonymity, attributed the slow pace of work to the delay in releasing funds by the FG.

He said the company had been doing skeletal work since April, hoping the government would release the funds to complete the project.

He, however, appealed to motorists plying the road, especially at the Agbowo-Ojoo axis, to always exercise caution. (NAN