Motorists and residents in owns and communities bordering the Eti-Osa-Lekki corridor can to relief from traffic congestion, as construction works have begun on the proposed Lekki regional road.
At a groundbreaking ceremony held at the project site on Saturday, the Lagos State, governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, described the development as “a manifestation” of his administration’s commitment towards improving socio-economic activities on the Lekki-Epe axis by the provision of supporting infrastructure.
With the flag off of the construction works, Sanwo-Olu is seen starting his second year of his four-year tenure with infrastructure development drive.
The 8.75 kilometre road, being handled by Messrs Hi-Tech Construction Company Limited, will link Lekki-Epe Expressway at Victoria Garden City (VGC) junction to the Freedom Way in Eti Osa. The road, according to the state government, is a precursor to the proposed Fourth Mainland Bridge that will hopefully take off from that axis.
It is expected to further open up the Lekki area and bring relief to the highly congested corridor, as it will serve as alternative route. When completed in the next 24 months, the regional road will also change the entire landscape of Eti Osa and improve journey time for commuters.
“With the flag off of the construction of this critical road infrastructure, we are keeping the promise we made to Lagosians. As a government, when we give commitments to our people, we do not shy away from it. Our word is our bond. Today’s event is a manifestation of our pledge to address infrastructural challenges on the Eti Osa axis.
“We know what people go through on the Lekki-Epe Expressway as a result of traffic. We are moved by the pains to hasten the process of putting the Regional Road in place to bring the long sought relief to our citizens working and living on this axis. Today, we are here for the groundbreaking ceremony to start work on this critical infrastructures,” Sanwo-Olu said on Saturday.
According to the governor, the government and the contractor had made plans for exigencies that may arise in the course of the construction work, assuring that the project would not be stalled by unforeseen challenges.
He said Hi-Tech had assured the Government that the project would be delivered on agreed period, even in the event of being faced by unforeseeable challenges.
“By the time of our third anniversary in office, we should have been getting ready to commission this road. That is the commitment we have given and we are going to hold the contractor on this timeline. As a Government, we will keep our own part,” he added.
Sanwo-Olu, however, warned against further encroachment on the right of way, saying sanctions awaited property developers and state officials who undermined the state’s planning approvals and encroached the alignments of the regional road.
He said: “The regional road alignment has been gazetted long time ago, but we realise people deliberately flouted our approved plan for the road. I have instructed the commissioner for physical planning and urban development to discipline and sanction officials that have been found culpable to compromise any form of approval for the right-of-way. They will be punished with people who raise properties on the approved alignment, he said”
