Matthew Otoijagha
Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria has urged the Federal Government to find short term and emergency remedy for the persistent gridlock along the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports access roads.
The group said while the Federal Government was working to address the road condition, especially as it affected the Wharf Road, a major road leading to the Apapa Port, and had also inaugurated the repair of the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, there was a need for some immediate short-term measures to address the plight of commuters and ensure free flow of traffic on the roads.
“The short-term measures that government can take to address the gridlock, include fixing alternative roads, such as the Leventis road, which many now rely on to exit the port city,” the group noted in a statement.
The Chairman, STOAN Princess Vicky Haastrup, said, “The situation in Apapa particularly as it relates to access to the port is a monumental national disgrace. “How can a sector that has such huge potential and that generates billions of naira for government be left to so degenerate? Government is looking for oil but we have a sector that has the capacity to give you all the revenue you need yet the sector is suffering. Why has it not been attended to?
Haastrup urged the Federal Ministry of Works, Power and Housing to urgently reopen the bridge exiting Apapa at Leventis/Area B, which had been shut for several months without any visible sign of work being carried out on it. “Without reopening that bridge, the inflow and outflow of trucks will remain a major challenge in Apapa,” she said.
Also speaking, the Africa Communication Manager of Maersk, Augustine Fischer, said the poor condition of roads in and out of the Apapa area of Lagos State remained a major blight on port operations in Nigeria.
He argued that the two seaports in Lagos handle more than 60 per cent of goods imported into the country. While the volume of cargoes imported into the country had been on the rise —increasing from about 35 million metric tonnes in 2006 to more than 80 million metric tonnes 12 years later —the roads through which these goods were taken out of the port to their final destinations had gone from bad to worse.
He said, “The poor road condition coupled with a lack of parking lot for trucks and proliferation of tank farms in Apapa, means these trucks have to spend days – sometimes as much as 10 days – to cover a short distance of less than 5km to enter the port to drop off, or take delivery of cargo.
“The resultant effect is a backlog of cargoes at the port. Cargoes that should ordinarily exit the port within three days after discharge from the ship could remain in the port for as long as 21 days, waiting for trucks.
“The best solution to the Apapa traffic congestion is to fix the roads and seek alternatives to cargo evacuation. The port has increased in efficiency and capacity but the port access roads have deteriorated progressively since they were built.”
Also speaking on the gridlock, the General Manager of PTML Terminal, Tin Can Island Port Complex, Tunde Keshinro, said, “As Nigerians, we all know that for our ports to attain the desired efficiency, the roads need to be at their best and functional, which unfortunately is not so.”