Lagos State Government has said the Third Mainland Bridge
would be temporarily shut down for four days starting from midnight of August
23 to midnight of August 26 for “investigative maintenance test” to be carried
out.
The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Ade Akinsanya
who stated this in a statement today, said the decision was taken after due
consultation with the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing.
The four-day closure, according to Akinsanya, will enable
the contractors assess the true state of the bridge after which repair works
would commence by the end of the year or early in 2019.
“The Third Mainland Bridge which was opened about 30 years
ago by the then military government has had haphazard maintenance and repairs
in the past which the present Federal Government is committed to correct by
carrying out proper and continuous maintenance and repairs on it,” said
Akinsanya.
Consequently, the state government appealed for the
cooperation, support and understanding of all motorists and residents, advising
them to minimize non-essential travel and movements during the four-day
closure. Akinsanya said all traffic management agencies including the Lagos
State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC)
and the Police, among others, have been mandated to ensure smooth flow of
traffic on all the other alternative roads and traffic corridor across the
metropolis to ensure free flow of traffic.
