…Refuse heaps take over highways
…LAWMA decries lack of access to clear mess

By Kingsley Adegboye

Apart from the nightmare residents of Apapa, workers and visitors to Apapa go through on daily basis as a result of the unending gridlock in the axis caused by the menace of articulated trucks and tankers, which has remained a major concern, one other serious issue of concern is the degradation of Apapa environment by the gridlock.

File: GRIDLOCK—The traffic gridlock at the Mile 2 end of Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, Lagos

A visit to major highways and access roads in and out of Apapa and its environs monarch, will elicit shock following the level of environmental degradation the entire area has been subjected to, as a fall out of the dreaded gridlock.

While most parts of the highways occupied by trucks and tankers have become refuse dumps, because of indiscriminate dumping, the stench or smell oozing out of the highways is something unimaginable. This is because people freely and openly urinate and defecate along the highways thereby defacing the environment.

The effect of the gridlock has made it impossible for waste managers in the axis to clear the mess on the highways, as their trucks cannot navigate through the highways.

Meanwhile, against the backdrop of its inability to evacuate refuse dumps in the axis, Lagos Waste Management Authority LAWMA, said recently that the gridlock along Apapa-Oshodi Expressway was hampering the removal of waste by its personnel in Apapa area of the state.

The Head, Public Affairs, LAWMA, Mr Obinna Onyenali, who disclosed this in a statement, said the gridlock, often caused by articulated vehicles and trucks had caused the collapse of public hygiene and waste management in Apapa.

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He said almost all the roads in the area had become inaccessible by LAWMA’s operational vehicles.

According to him, “This deplorable condition of the environment in Apapa and the continuous degeneration of quality of life has become a source of worry to LAWMA. The Authority in recent times has intensified efforts to rid the state of backlog of wastes which have defaced the environment.

“We have deployed trucks across the state to stem the tide of indiscriminate dumping of refuse. We have also engaged the PSP operators to tackle wastes at household level.

“However, all efforts by the Authority to extend its services to Apapa are being hampered by the heavy presence of articulated trucks. These trucks have blocked everywhere and made the roads impassable for LAWMA and PSP operators,” he said.

Onyeali added that the situation had affected the operations of LAWMA sweepers, who according to him could not work efficiently, expressing concern that “If the situation is not quickly addressed, the general degradation of the environment could lead to outbreak of epidemic.”

On the way of the situation, an environmentalist and a journalist, Mr. Kayode Aboyeji, noted that with the ongoing reconstruction of Apapa-Oshodi, the degradation presently experienced along the expressway will be taken care of.

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Lamenting the menace of trucks and tankers in Apapa, Aboyeji said there is need for government to begin to think about renewal programme for the axis following the dilapidated infrastructure there.    According to him, “Gridlock is being experienced in Apapa and its environs because of the dilapidated roads all over the place.

“So, to address the issue, the government must start think about renewing the outdated infrastructure in Apapa. The roads, drainage systems and others must reconstructed to lift Apapa up from its present worrisome situation”.

Vanguard