Traffic congestion has worsened on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, leaving commuters and motorists stranded for hours around Kara Bridge and adjoining routes as ongoing bridge repairs continue to disrupt movement.
The situation was worsened by a multiple-vehicle crash involving a container-laden truck on Tuesday, trapping some commuters on the road overnight and forcing others to trek long distances.
As of Wednesday morning, traffic remained heavy around Kara Bridge, Berger, OPIC, Long Bridge, Ojota, Ogba and Maryland, with road users reporting prolonged delays. Some commuters who left work in Lagos on Tuesday evening said they were still on the road hours later. One resorted to trekking from New Garage to Berger, while a truck driver said he remained stuck at Ikeja at about 3 a.m. Wednesday, still en route to Aba. Another commuter said, “I am headed to Mowe and I have been trekking for over three hours.”
The congestion has also disrupted public transportation, with commuters reporting difficulty getting buses on Wednesday morning.
The gridlock comes amid the Federal Government’s rehabilitation of Kara Bridge, where deteriorating expansion joints are being replaced. The two-week project, directed by Minister of Works David Umahi, began on September 8 and runs until September 22. The ministry said the joints had exceeded their service life and needed replacement to preserve the bridge’s structural integrity.
Work is being carried out in phases, with one half of the affected section closed while traffic uses the other side. The project, originally scheduled for August, was postponed over concerns about traffic management. However, the reduced road capacity has left the corridor vulnerable to major gridlock whenever there is an accident or breakdown — a vulnerability exposed again on Tuesday.
The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) said preliminary findings showed the container truck developed a mechanical fault while in motion, causing the driver to lose control and hit six other vehicles, including a Toyota Hilux, an interstate bus, a Hyundai Odyssey, a Sienna, a Toyota Highlander and another Mitsubishi Hilux.
Emergency responders arrived at about 6:05 a.m., with LASEMA, LASTMA and police managing traffic and recovering the vehicles with the help of private towing operators. The crash forced a closure of the Lagos-bound section, compounding the existing congestion and affecting motorists travelling in the opposite direction.
Authorities began removing barriers around the construction area to create an alternative passage, deploying LASTMA and Ogun State traffic officials to manage the situation. The gridlock spread beyond Kara and Berger, extending past Long Bridge towards Magboro and into Lagos.
The prolonged traffic also pushed up transport fares, with fares rising to as much as ₦4,000 from Berger to Oshodi, ₦3,500 from Berger to Mowe, ₦1,500 from Agege to OPIC, and ₦2,000 from Magboro to Berger.
Commuters reported lost working hours, added fuel expenses and physical exhaustion, with some abandoning vehicles or trekking long distances to escape the traffic. The situation has renewed concerns about the vulnerability of the Kara-OPIC corridor, which carries a large volume of commuters, commercial vehicles and goods between Lagos, Ogun State and other parts of the country.
LASTMA said on Wednesday morning that movement was gradually improving from Otedola Bridge towards Berger, Kara and the OPIC turning, though a backlog of traffic was still spreading beyond Long Bridge.
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