Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mallam Habib Abdullahi, has joined other stakeholders to express concern over the traffic gridlock which has affected access into Apapa in the past couple of weeks.
The gridlock, which is affecting the smooth delivery of cargoes at the ports, is attributed to the bad access roads into Apapa and worsened by the rainy season and the on-going reconstruction of the Apapa-Oshodi expressway.
Speaking at the stakeholders’ meeting held on Friday at the NPA Headquarters boardroom in Marina, Lagos, Abdullahi expressed the concern of the organisation on the perennial traffic gridlock on the port access roads. He said the situation if left unchecked could have adverse effect on the activities of both the Lagos Port complex (LPC) and Tin Can Island Port (TCIP).
He therefore called for an urgent collaborative effort by all the major stakeholders in the nation’s maritime sector to address the challenge.
Reiterating the vital roles of access roads on port operation, Abdullahi expressed the commitment of NPA to cooperate and work with relevant government agencies to find lasting solution to the Apapa traffic gridlock.
The NPA boss appealed to construction companies handling construction of roads leading into and out of the ports to expedite action, adding that NPA has also embarked on remedial work of fixing the common user roads around the ports with the aim of alleviating the problem.
The meeting was attended by the Chairman, Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN), Princess Vicky Haastrup; and Port Managers of LPC and TCIP, Mr. Nasir Anas Mohammed and Mr. Babatunde Longe respectively.
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