The Minister of Works, David Umahi, yesterday, stated that President Bola Tinubu has asked him to fast track the proposed 470 kilometers Abuja-Lagos Greenfield superhighway, to be built by a private sector consortium at no cost to the government.
Speaking in Lagos, Umahi said that the consortium will
operate the facility for a yet-to-be-determined period on a build, operate and
transfer deal, though it would be tolled at different points to enable the
investors recoup their investment.
He assured that the four-and-a-half-hour travel time for
vehicles plying the route at 100 kilometres per hour was achievable.
He said: “When I first introduced this to the public, many
doubting Thomases were saying, ‘It is impossible. Lagos to Abuja done in 14
hours cannot be done in four and half hours.’ But that is the renewed hope of
Mr President,” he said.
The minister explained that Tinubu approved that the project
be fast tracked, with the contractor on site in three months.
Umahi said: “The president has approved that I fast-track
this project, which would be two lanes, and each lane a two-carriage way.
“The only carriageway that is equivalent to this is the
Third Mainland Bridge where each carriageway is 14 metres. It is going to be
built on 275-millimetre thick concrete.
“The live-shelf design of this project is going to be 100
years. It is going to be completed within four years and this is doable. There
are a number of bridges that will be built. There are a number of tolling
points that are going to be there. We are not providing any kobo for the
project, just assisting with direction.”
He explained that from Lagos, the road will pass through
eight states in the Southwest and North central to Abuja. The states are Kogi,
Ekiti, Oyo, FCT, Lagos, Ogun, Niger and Kwara.
He praised the private consortium behind the deal, Advance
Engineering Company, saying he was “very satisfied with their concept and what
they have put in place.”
Umahi added: “The next thing is to bring the business
proposal so that we can negotiate the cost of the project. The good thing is
that we are building this road on concrete so we can predict the cost. In
asphalt, you cannot predict the cost. The cost of asphalt roads changes every
month.
“Concrete roads are more durable and cheaper than asphalt
and I have directed all ongoing projects that have not advanced up to 80 per
cent to change the remaining to concrete.”
The minister added that plans were underway to make the road
a business and industrial corridor with hotels, factories, and housing estates,
among others, on the route.
Emphasising the seriousness of the project, Umahi said that
the contract would be watertight such that if the consortium backed out
unreasonably, it may have to pay a fine of $10m.
The chairman of the consortium, Kenny Martins, described the
project as “the first of its kind in Africa”, saying it would be ICT-compliant
with a fibre optic connection, solar-powered street lights and security points
on the entire stretch of the road.
Martins said in Lagos, the route would begin from the
proposed 4th Mainland Bridge in Epe to Abuja.