Julius Berger Nigeria has started fixing the damaged expansion joints on the Longbridge section of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the repair work started on Saturday as the company deployed men, materials and machines to the bridge.
The Punch had reported last Friday complaints by motorists who plied the five-kilometre bridge that the expansion joints were badly damaged.
The tar on the joints was washed off by a flood, exposing the iron linking the joints.
A reporter, who walked along the corridor last Thursday, observed that the joints had degenerated into potholes as motorists, and commercial and truck drivers swerved dangerously while attempting to avoid running into them.
Some motorists slammed the company for doing a “shoddy job” on the bridge and demanded immediate repairs.
When newsmen visited the bridge on Sunday, they observed that the repair work started from the OPIC end of the bridge inward Ogun State.
Some of the open joints were covered with asphalt.
However, the repair work only covered about one-third of the bridge, leaving most of the affected parts untouched.
It was also discovered that work had yet to commence on the other side of the bridge inward Lagos.
A motorist, who identified himself only as Adewale, said, “This is what we have been expecting all this while. We hope they complete the remaining parts on time.”
Another driver, who identified himself as Timothy, said, “I take this route every day, so I am impressed with the ongoing repair. But I want them to do a better job this time around so it can last longer.”
The supervisor in charge of the Lagos-Sagamu section of the expressway, Wale Adebote, said the repair work was still ongoing.
He said, “It should have been carried out on Friday, but we made it Saturday because we have more traffic on that road due to people who are travelling. So, we started work on Saturday, even till late at night and we will continue on Monday.”
The official, however, noted that the repair was to make the road motorable, as permanent fixing of the expansion joints would be done at the completion of the current phase of the work.
Julius Berger’s spokesman, Emmanuel Isibor, could not be reached for comments as he did not take his calls or respond to a text message from our correspondent as of the time of filing this report.
