Hundreds of motorists headed to Abuja and other
parts of the north were on Sunday stranded in between
Kwara and Kogi state due to a heavy gridlock.
According to NAN, the gridlock which started as early
as 8am occurred at the Osi-Eruku axis of the Ilorin-
Omu-Aran-Kabba road.
The gridlock was said to be as a result of an increase
in the volume of traffic and breakdown of heavy duty
trucks.
The report said that a bridge which collapsed at
Tatabu village in Niger on Monday forced diversion to
the Ilorin-Omu-Aran-Kabba road.
Some of the passengers who were returning to their
duty posts lamented the behaviour of some drivers.
Emmanuel Ashaolu, a civil servant, said it was
surprising to be caught in a traffic jam on the same
road he had been passing through easily for so many
years.
“The road might not be that good but there had never
been this kind of problem on this road, my appeal is to
the government to come to our aid,” he said.
Another passenger, Okon Bassey, a businessman,
described the attitude of the heavy truck drivers to
other road users as worrisome and unpatriotic.
“They are uncontrollable, they just drive and pack
without due regard to other road users, there is need
to check their excesses,” he said.
Francis Adetunji, unit commander of the Federal Road
Safety Corps (FRSC) in Omu-Aran, said the command
was on top of the situation.
“The command had envisaged the problems that may
arise as a result of the diversion and had swung into
action by stepping up our surveillance and patrols of
the highway to forestall any ugly incidents,” Adetunji
said.
“We have been to different communities and held
meetings with community leaders for them to in turn
sensitise the residents, especially road side traders
and students to always be at alert.
“The towing operators within the command have also
been put on red alert to remove broken down trucks
and other vehicles so as not to obstruct the smooth
flow of traffic.”
TheCable
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