Some residents of Ikorodu on Monday appealed to the Lagos State Government to relieve them from the gridlock experienced on the Mile 12/Ikorodu road.
The residents spoke in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Monday.
They urged the government to urgently repair the pothole on Kosofe/Mile 12 road, toward free flow of vehicular movement.
Mrs Adebola Adegoke, a trader, said that the gridlock becomes a nightmare whenever it rains.
“Commuting from Ikorodu to Mile 12 ought to be less than 20 minutes but with the traffic, we sometime spend two to five hours depending on the day and volume of cars on the road.
“This is because vehicles approaching the failed portion of the road divert to the other lane to avoid the pothole which has destroyed more than half of the road.
“It is sad that the Ikorodu-Lagos road remains the only access to all other parts of the state leaving residents with no alternative route.
“We appeal to the government to assist in the repair of the road so as to make life easier for us,’’ Adegoke said.
Mr Saheed Bamgbade, an Architect, said that commercial transporters utilise the gridlock to inflate transport fare from Ikorodu to Ketu to as high as N500 during rush hours as against the usual N200 fare.
“Whenever we complain about the high cost of transport fare, the drivers would attribute it to gridlock and need to recoup money for fuel and make sufficient money for delivery to the owners of the buses.
“The extra cost of transport is affecting our income and the stress of staying long in traffic is taking a toll on our health,’’ he said.
Mrs Idayat Ibrahim, a trader, suggested that government should give urgent attention to the repair of the road, saying that the situation leaves commuters stranded at bus stop for hours, thus reducing the productivity of the state.
“On some days, we encounter the traffic from Majidun, sometime at Asolo and it extends from the failed portion of the road at Kosofe.
“Because of the gridlock, many residents resort to the BRT buses and the queue for the buses would be so long that we would have to wait for hours before getting a bus.
“Sometime, if I am in a rush to attend to customers, I board a motorcycle to escape the traffic, even though I know that it is dangerous to ride a bike on the highway,’’ she said.
Mr Tunde Tanimola, a printer, said he monitors traffic report on the radio before leaving the house to reduce the hours spent in traffic.
“Driving daily to and fro in Lagos traffic is reducing our life span. The recurring incident of people passing away from their sleep is becoming alarming.
“I do not want to die early; that is why I try to reduce my exposure to stress. Whenever I hear that the traffic is horrible, I stay away from the road, especially if I do not have any important appointment.
“Government should assist us to quickly repair the road so that we can go about our businesses easily, especially as we approach the peak of the rainy season,’’ he said.
Mr Rilwan Balogun, a transporter, urged the government to go beyond the palliative measure of fixing the road with sand and stones.
“Once it rains, it washes everything off the road and we are back to square one,’’ he said.
Balogun urged government to proffer a lasting solution to the issue toward preserving the well being of citizens, easing vehicular movement and boosting the socio-economic development of the state. (NAN)