The Lagos State Government has promised to complete the ongoing regeneration and upgrading of four strategic roads and drains in Ikeja GRA by December to tackle perennial flooding and gridlock.
This was contained in a statement on Tuesday by Adeshina Odunuga, spokesman, Lagos State Ministry of Works and Infrastructure.
Odunuga said the roads were: Oduduwa Way, Oduduwa Crescent, Oba Dosunmu and Sobo Arobiodu Streets.
Odunuga said the Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Works and Infrastructure, Aramide Adeyoye, made the pledge during an inspection of construction works on the projects on Tuesday.
Adeyoye said increased commercial activities within Ikeja GRA overstretched existing infrastructure, leading to the collapse of drains, flooding and the road network.
She said several streets did not have proper drainages and water channels, thereby compounding flooding, which in turn caused gridlock, hardship, damage to vehicles and low patronage for businesses.
She said the Oduduwa Way, Oduduwa Crescent, Oba Dosunmu and Sobo Arobiodu Streets when completed would resolve the challenges, adding that the roads had a combined length of about 5km.
She said: “As I have always said, a road without a drain is as good as no road, because without the drain being done, in no time the road will get damaged. But when we get all channels fixed, then the life of the road will be automatically extended.
“We have a major cross culvert discharging water to Adekunle Fajuyi which is causing flooding and residents are not happy and we need to engage them, just to assure them that the water is discharging to the canal.”
Adeyoye said the project, conceived under Ikeja Model City Plan, captured change in density, introduction of commercial and mix-development along certain road alignments, drive urban regeneration and public infrastructure improvement programme that would accelerate socio-economic development.
The Special Adviser said Oduduwa Way was at 80 per cent completion stage and was set for delivery by the end of August.
She added that the others: Oduduwa Crescent, Oba Dosumu and Sobo Arobiodu Streets, would to be completed by December.
She noted that the project was in line with Pillar T in the THEMES Agenda, which stood for Traffic Management and Transportation of the Babajide Sanwo-Olu rigime.
Adeyoye appealed to residents’ associations to take ownership of the project and guard the collective assets against misuse and abuse.