The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola on Thursday said that the reconstruction work on Tatabu bridge along Mokwa-Jebba road would be completed before the end of 2018.
Fashola said this in Abuja when a delegation from the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) and Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) paid him a courtesy visit.
He said the contractor handling the project was already on site, adding that the arrangement by the Federal Government when the bridge collapsed was to have a temporary road for motorists.
“When I first came on that road, from llorin to Jebba, your people were there for two weeks, they could not move but as I speak to you, that side has improved.
“The contractor has created a temporary road, while the reconstruction work on the bridge is ongoing and we cannot complete the project in 14 days even with all the resources available,” he said.
He said plans had been concluded in the ministry to have a workshop with members of NARTO and PTD on ways to make Nigerian roads safe and durable.
The minister said President Muhammadu Buhari had approved that certain vehicles would be restricted from being loaded beyond a certain point in ports and NNPC depots.
According to him, before we will start the implementation, we thought we should have a workshop with you so that you will know what we want to do.
Dr Kassim Bataiya, the President of NARTO and leader of the delegation, commended the minister for his efforts in addressing the problems of decaying infrastructure in the country.
He said several reasons account for the failure of roads in the country but observed that the Federal Government was particularly pointing accusing fingers on overloading of trucks.
“While agreeing that overloading is one of the causes, we have consistently maintained that standards in road design, materials, construction and supervision are compromised,” he said.
He pledged the commitment of NARTO and PTD to cooperate with the Federal Government to ensure sanity, safety and security on Nigerian roads. (NAN)
