By Kingsley Adegboye
The Lagos State Public Works Corporation LSPWC, last week intensified its advocacy programme on the roles of the public in curbing road damage in the state by engaging religious leaders at a stakeholders’ forum aimed at soliciting their support in the government’s fight against road abuses.

The religious leaders who attended the forum from the five divisions were told to cooperate with the Corporation in its ongoing campaign to stamp out road abuses in Lagos state by conveying the message to their members.

The Chairman of LSPWC, Mr. Gbenga Akintola  said the plea to religious leaders became necessary to stop certain habits like burning of tyres and cooking on roads, insisting that if these habits are not curtailed, roads funding by the government will be a waste.

Decrying the various abuses to which the state roads have been subjected to by members of the public, Mr Akintola noted that the attendant consequences of these abuses have led to loss of lives and maiming of bodies.

Head of Projects, LSPWC , Mr. Ganiyu Aiyepe, an engineer, who was the facilitator of the forum described water is the major cause of road damage. According to him, any road that retains water will deteriorate fast. He added that lack of effective and efficient drainage system encourages flooding during the rains and the retained water causes the roads to deteriorate. He therefore advised road users, residents and car wash operators not to allow waste water to retain on roads.

Aiyepe added that indiscriminate cutting of roads often leads to road damage. It is an offence, he said, for anyone to cut roads without obtaining permission from the relevant government agency.

He also noted that petroleum products have disintegrating effect on bitumen and this accounts for why asphalt will disintegrate when in contact with products like diesel and kerosine among others. He said the diesel or petrol dripping on the road from heavy duty vehicles eventually breaks up the asphalt surfacing and pot holes and ditches are thus created.

The Head of Projects who said excessive axle load is another cause of road damage, explained that when roads are made to carry excessive loads that they were not designed for, they ( roads) to become distressed.

According to him, the situation becomes worse when owners of goods bring them to their door steps thereby imposing too much axle on roads that were originally designed as feeder, access or estate roads. This scenario, he said is very common with articulated vehicles such as containers and tankers which are often seen on streets with heavy loads.

Anytime people burn tires or other items on the road, heat is generated, leading to disintegration of the asphalt elements. This causes potholes to develop on such spots after cooling and heating which takes place over time.

Aiyepe further noted that dumping of refuse in drains causes road damage,. He explained that many people are fond of dumping solid waste materials in drains especially when it is raining. Items such as water containers, clothing materials, nylon and domestic wastes cause blockage of drains thereby resulting in overflow of water into the road surface with the ultimate effect of damage on the portion where water is retained.

In their responses, the religious leaders commended the efforts of the government to put Lagos roads in motorable conditions. They therefore promised the Corporation full cooperation from their members.