By Victor Madu
Seven months after Charity footbridge was closed to pedestrians over its poor state, the bridge has been repaired and re-opened to commuters. The footbridge, which serves as a life-saver for commuters, military officers and students of Command Day Secondary School, Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre (NAFRC), Oshodi, Lagos, was shut by Lagos State Government for safety reasons.
Before now, residents, including students has to take quick dash to cross the Oshodi-Apapa expressway. An official of the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, had told The Guardian they were making plans to begin repair work on the bridge.
The source, who acknowledged that officials of NAFRC had been following up on the issue, said the ministry was waiting for release of funds to fix the pedestrian bridge.
However, after a report by The Guardian on the risk of crossing the expressway on foot, especially by students and the elderly, work commenced and it was reopened to commuters last week.
A pedestrian, Mr. Kazeem Sadiq, told The Guardian that though the footbridge has been reopened, the contractor should expedite action to complete the job to avoid endangering the lives of commuters.
Another commuter, Mr. Femi Oluyemo, said there’s a high level of risk using a bridge undergoing reconstruction. He stressed that many pedestrians are only using the bridge in its present state because they are scared of crossing the expressway. He urged the Federal government to hasten the reconstruction.
A lady, who said her children attend Command Secondary School in NAFRC, said the bridge should be completed quickly because of students, who are taking risks crossing the expressway.
An Army official at the entry post of NAFRC, said parts of the bridge are seriously damaged and are in need of serious reconstruction. A construction worker on site told The Guardian that reconstruction of the bridge commenced several weeks ago. He said more work would be carried out in some areas, especially in the middle.
Source: The Guardian
