Lagos: Kara Bridge repairs trigger gridlock, chaos

Motorists are stranded for several hours as two-week repair works on the Kara Bridge have triggered heavy gridlock on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

DAILY POST recalls that the Federal Government commenced the replacement of damaged expansion joints on the bridge on Tuesday after the project was earlier suspended to allow for traffic management planning.

According to latest reports, the gridlock has stretched from the Kara Bridge in Ogun State to the 7Up Junction in Lagos State and beyond due to the repairs.

On Tuesday, the gridlock had extended beyond the Secretariat Bus Stop as motorists coming from Ikeja and Agege and heading towards the Otedola underpass were caught in the congestion stretching beyond Otunba Jobi Fele Way.

However, by Wednesday morning, motorists were using one-way traffic routes to get passengers to their destinations as the congestion persisted.

Meanwhile, traffic and security officials were deployed to manage the situation. However, the repair works at the entry and exit points of the bridge further compounded the congestion around Kara.

Speaking on the development, the spokesperson for the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency, Babatunde Akinbiyi, called on motorists to exercise patience and cooperate with traffic officials during the repair period.

“We anticipated that there would be traffic, and that was why we issued a traffic advisory earlier.

“We can only appeal to motorists to bear with us for the time being because the repair works are necessary to ensure smooth movement and the safety of road users along the corridor.

“Anyone who does not have an important business along the axis should stay away, and those who cannot avoid using that route should cooperate with traffic officials,” he said.