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NEWS and REPORTS => Nigerian News => Topic started by: MrVan on Aug 11, 2012, 08:30 PM

Title: FRSC battles 24-hour gridlock on Lagos-Ibadan expressway
Post by: MrVan on Aug 11, 2012, 08:30 PM
Ogere (Ogun) -The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) is battling  to curtail a gridlock of more than 24 hours at the Lagos-Ibadan expressway

The Ogere Unit Commander, Mr Godwin Sangbansa, Friday, said that the gridlock, which stretched to over 350 metres at the J-5 area of the expressway, started at about 6.50 p.m. on Thursday.

According to him, an articulated vehicle with registration number Lagos KJA 545 XA carrying containers, lost two of its tyres and rammed into a Dangote trailer with registration number XA 394 UKM, parked by the roadside.

He said that both trailers fell on the road and blocked the Lagos-Ibadan axis of the road, making movement impossible for motorists heading to Ibadan from Lagos.

Sangbansa said that FRSC officials started diverting motorists to the Iperu axis in order to beat the blocked portion of the road because of the narrowness of that road and the volume of traffic.

He said the FRSC had opened another route around Industrial Tanker Park close to the bridge at Iperu but that movement there was slow.

The unit commander said that at about 8.30 p.m. on Thursday, there was heavy downpour that made movement impossible.

He said that the slow movement continued until about 10.30 a.m. on Friday when the commission's officials started the process of removing the articulated vehicles from the road.

Sangbansa added that the tedious process of removing the vehicles and the two loaded containers lasted for about five hours, adding that the road was opened to users at about 4.45 p.m.

"Motorists started moving freely without hindrance and were able to achieve 100 km per hour movement. But that came to a halt at about 8 p.m. when articulated vehicles from Lagos got into the road in convoy.

"This is because movement of articulated vehicles in Lagos is restricted until 6 p.m. and that accounted for what we experienced this evening.

"As a result, movement has been slow again but I want to assure you that the sector command in Abeokuta has given us more men to control the traffic in the area.

"As I speak to you, all of us including our rescue team are on ground to ensure free flow of traffic. We are leaving no stone unturned.'' (NAN

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