I have fixed Apapa gridlock, Governor Sanwo-Olu says

The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has stated that he has fixed the Apapa gridlock which has eased the transportation flow in the area.

Sanwo-Olu disclosed this during an interview on Channels TV’s Sunday Politics with Seun Okinbaloye.

He added that the trailers remain on the road because the ecosystem that NPA has set up, which is actually working, has witnessed internal sabotage.

What the governor is saying

Speaking on the ease of the gridlock in Apapa, Sanwo-Olu said, “I have fixed Apapa gridlock. And there’s no apology to that.

“I’m on national television. What we have done, even NPA has written letters to commend us. All of the major businesses in Apapa have written letters to commend us. I get daily video recording of what is happening in Apapa.

“But the remainder of the problem is the FG is fixing the road from Mile 2 end going to Apapa. That is the portion, that has not been completed, it’s a stretch less than a kilometer and needs to be completed.

“However, we still have trailers on some of these roads, because the ecosystem that NPA has set up, which is actually working, but there has been sabotage amongst themselves. Secondly, they don’t have enough trailer parks to take trucks off the roads, we are building one for them in Orile, which we have signed a concession for,” he said.

He added that the trailer park would relieve 2000 trucks, and urged that if an effective call-up system is in place, trucks that have not been called up would have no business coming to Apapa.

“In the terminals, when they call trailers to come, they need to have enough space in their facilities. These are the conversations we are trying to have with them.

“There are the little glitches we need to finalise with them, but in terms of blockages to citizens, we have done a good job,” he added.

What you should know

• The gridlock at the Apapa/Tincan axis has continued to defy solutions despite efforts by the Federal and Lagos State Governments.
• As part of measures to resolve the gridlock around the ports axis, the NPA had launched an Electronic Truck call-up system, ETO, designed for the management of truck movement and access to and from the Lagos ports.
• During the implementation of the new system, all trucks doing business at the ports will be required to park at the approved truck parks until they are called up into the port through the ETO app.
• However, the implementation of this initiative has been trailed with a lot of controversy and challenges as some of stakeholders have accused some government agencies and touts of extortion and favouritism.
• The NPA had in June 2021, identified over 30 toll points around Apapa and Tin Can ports manned by security personnel, where bribes are allegedly being collected before trucks are allowed into the Port.