Following the collapse of the Mokwa-Jeba bridge, trailers have now returned to the ever busy Abuja-Lokoja highway.
Newsmen, who have been monitoring traffic on the road, observed an increase in the volume of vehicles especially heavy trucks. Also noted is an increased rate of incidents mostly involving the articulated vehicles.
The heavy trucks which used to ply the Mokwa-Jeba road to and from Lagos, now ply the Abuja-Lokoja road in the early hours of the morning in a convoy, with some of them breaking down sometimes in the middle of the road.
A tanker driver, Rabiu Alhassan, said he always travelled from Suleja through Mokwa-Jeba to Lagos, but that since the collapse of the bridge, he now plies the Abuja-Lokoja road.
“Since the bridge which linked us to Lagos, from Mokwa-Jeba, collapsed I decided to use the Abuja-Lokoja road as there is no other alternative route,” he said.
Kabiru Usman, a trailer driver, at Gada Biyu, said he always stopped over at Gada Biyu to spend the night before he takes off due to the high volume of traffic on the road now.
He appealed to the Federal Government to reconstruct the Mokwa-Jeba bridge and ease the traffic congestion on the Abuja-Lokoja road.
Some residents of Gada Biyu, Gegu Aseni and Yangoji located on the ever busy highway, expressed concern on the high volume of traffic along the road now.
Reacting, the Yangoji unit commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Assistant Corps Commander, Joseph Godwin Zmagbaza, said the command has not rested on its oars in ensuring free flow of traffic.
“You know mostly the heavy trucks, because of the collapse of the Mokwa-Jeba bridge, now ply the Abuja-Lokoja road. But we are always visible on the road up till 7:00p.m. to ensure there are no crashes or traffic jams,” he said.