The Federal Government may reintroduce weighbridges on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. The goal is to check overloaded vehicles and reduce road accidents. The Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Olufemi Dare, disclosed this on Tuesday. He spoke at a joint press conference on the Otedola Bridge. He was with the Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi. A tanker fire occurred on the bridge on Monday.
Nigeria once operated weighbridges on major highways. They checked axle loads and vehicle weight. Overloaded trucks destroyed road surfaces and caused crashes. The weighbridges fell into disrepair. They were abandoned or vandalised. In 2013, the Federal Government promised to reintroduce them. In 2019, the plan resurfaced. Neither was implemented. The Lagos-Ibadan Expressway was reconstructed over a decade. It was completed in 2023. The road is now being considered for concrete pavement. That project could include weighbridges.
Dare said a proposal would go to the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, within a week. It would seek to incorporate weighbridges into the planned upgrade with continuously reinforced concrete pavement. He said weighbridges would monitor truck weights, improve safety and encourage checks on braking systems. He said the fire occurred when a fully loaded tanker rolled backwards and fell beneath the bridge after colliding with another vehicle. The ministry will conduct a structural integrity test on the bridge.
Dare attributed accidents to reckless driving, poor vehicle maintenance and vandalism. More than 100 solar lights have been removed from the expressway. Indiscriminate parking by trucks continues. An expanded stakeholders’ meeting is planned for mid-November. It will involve motorists, traditional rulers, and security agencies from Lagos and Ogun states.
Osiyemi said the corridor is accident-prone but blamed driver behaviour and poor vehicle maintenance. He welcomed the weighbridge proposal. “Some vehicles using the highway are either overloaded or are not suitable for the route,” he said. He said Lagos and Ogun had received approval from the Minister of Works for a wider stakeholders’ meeting. Lagos has begun its ember-month road safety campaign. One person sustained burn injuries from Monday’s accident and is receiving treatment. Osiyemi assured motorists that the bridge is safe pending the structural test.
Winners: Road safety advocates, who gain a policy pathway. The Federal Ministry of Works, which shows initiative. Emergency responders, who were commended. Lagos and Ogun states, which gain cooperation. Truck owners who comply, if enforcement is fair. Losers: Truck operators who overload, who face checks. Motorists, if the bridge is structurally compromised. Taxpayers, if the weighbridges are not maintained. The government, if the promise is not implemented. The victims of Monday’s fire.
Bottom Line: Weighbridges may return to the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. The proposal goes to the minister in a week. Overloaded trucks destroy roads and kill people. Weighbridges can help. Nigeria abandoned them before. It must not abandon them again.