BY Favour Nnabugwu

ABUJA—In its efforts to improve the road sector for better economic activities and social integration in the country, the Federal

Government yesterday disclosed that it has spent N1.47trillion on 184 roads across the six geo-political zones in the country.
The Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolememen, said in Abuja that some of the roads, which he described as death traps, inherited by President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, were now in good conditions.

East – West bad road

A breakdown of the 184 projects across the six-geopolitical zones showed 30 road projects in the North Central, valued at N275.6 billion; 27 in the North East estimated at N319.1billion; 20 projects in the North West; valued at N157.1bn; 45 projects in the South East, at N243.2 billion; 32 projects in the South South, valued at  N107.5bn; and 30 projects in the South West, valued at N367.1billion.

He said: “Travel times have been reduced between origins and destinations, cost of vehicle maintenance have been drastically reduced, accidents and carnage on Nigerian roads have been reduced due to better pavement design and construction, and economic goods are now better through the nation’s arterial roads, with better turn-around times that lead to more profits for entrepreneurs in all the six geo- political zones”

Some of the roads the Minister mentioned include: the dualisation of Abuja-Lokoja-Benin Road in FCT, Kogi and Edo states, dualisation of Kano-Maiduguri Road in Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Yobe & Borno states; dualisation of Suleja-Minna Road in Niger State; reconstruction of Onitsha-Enugu-Port Harcourt Highway in Anambra, Enugu, Abia & Rivers states and the reconstruction of Benin-Ore-Shagamu Expressway in Edo, Ondo & Ogun states.

Others are reconstruction of Lagos-Shagamu-Ibadan Expressway in Lagos, Ogun & Oyo State; construction of Loko-Oweto Bridge over River Benue in Nasarawa & Benue States; construction of the 2nd Niger Bridge in Onitsha/Asaba in Anambra & Delta States; reconstruction of Mokwa-Bida Road in Niger State; reconstruction of Akure-Ilesha Road in Ondo/Osun State; reconstruction of Sokoto-Tambuwal-Jega-Birnin Yauri-Kontagora-Makera Road in Sokoto, Kebbi & Niger States and the reconstruction of Vandeikya-Obudu Road in Benue & Cross Rivers States, among others.

The Minister stated that his Ministry had had to contend with so many social challenges in efforts to deliver the road projects.
“These include the insurgency in the North-Eastern part of the country, excess axle load of trucks beyond acceptable tonnage on highways, indiscriminate cutting across the highways, burning of tyres on the roads, erection of bumps on roads, destruction of road furniture as well as encroachment on right of ways,” he said..

He, however, added that with the advent of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme, SURE-P that ensured additional funding of selected projects in the road sector, which resulted in enhanced service delivery in the sector, four arterial roads were built across the country in 2013.

The four roads include the dualization of Abuja-Abaji-Lokoja Highway, Kano-Maiduguri Highway, and the rehabilitation of Onitsha-Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway, Benin-Ore-Shagamu Expressway, Lagos-Shagamu-Ibadan Expressway, as well as the construction of the new Loko-Oweto Bridge over River Benue in Nasarawa and Benue States, and the early works on the 2nd Niger Bridge in Anambra and Delta States, among others.