The Federal Government has reduced the timeline for completing the reconstruction of Lagos’ Carter Bridge from the initial 36 months to 24 months, citing the bridge’s importance to the city’s transportation network.
Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, announced the revised timeline on Monday while inspecting the ongoing reconstruction of the Carter and Iddo Bridges in Lagos.
Umahi was accompanied by the Minister of State for Works, Mohammed Goronyo, and members of the National Assembly, including the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Works, Akin Alabi.
The minister explained that the decision to fast-track the project was influenced by the strategic role Carter Bridge plays in vehicular movement across Lagos.
The 1.58-kilometre bridge has served Lagos for more than six decades, but inadequate maintenance over the years has contributed to significant structural deterioration.
“Carter Bridge has stayed for over 60 to 70 years with no maintenance.
“The lifespan of every bridge is about 50 years, and what we found out from the underwater survey is that a lot of the piles had detached from the pile caps.
“It is like having the leg removed from the hip. There was also a lot of rust within the piles, while scouring and illegal sand mining contributed to the failure of the bridge,” Umahi said.
The minister said a new design had been completed for the reconstruction, with additional engineering features aimed at improving traffic movement and protecting the structure from future damage.
The redesigned bridge will include more ramps to ease congestion, while one carriageway will be built above the other.
A cable-stayed section will also be incorporated to provide adequate clearance for navigation.
“Carter Bridge is 1.58km but you are going to see aesthetics, engineering and innovation.
“We are going to be flying one carriageway over the other, increasing the number of ramps to decongest traffic towards the ramp sections.
“We are also having a cable bridge to contain the 105 spans for navigational activities. It is going to be beautiful,” Umahi said.
According to Umahi, China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC), the contractor handling the project, has completed about 15 per cent of the preliminary works.
The completed preparatory activities include securing a project yard and constructing access roads, while piling work is expected to commence before the end of the week.
The minister also disclosed that additional protection measures, including gabions, would be installed to safeguard the bridge foundations from erosion and scouring.
He explained that the existing Carter Bridge could not be fully closed during construction because of its importance to Lagos’ transportation system.
As a result, the Federal Government will continue monitoring and maintaining the existing structure until the new bridge is completed.
“If we close Carter Bridge, Lagos will go into katakata (chaos). That is why we are maintaining it while the reconstruction is going on,” Umahi said.
Umahi added that similar intervention measures were being carried out on the Third Mainland Bridge to extend its service life by another 50 years.
He expressed confidence that the reconstructed Carter Bridge could remain in service for more than 100 years because of the engineering features incorporated into its new design.
The minister commended CCECC for the progress made so far and thanked members of the National Assembly for their support for the project.
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