Ambode to Deliver Airport Road, Pen Cinema Flyover, Oshodi Interchange, Oshodi-Abule-Egba BRT and Others Major Projects on Schedule

The Lagos State Government has ordered contractors handling major ongoing projects across the State to speed up work to bring relief and comfort to motorists and residents, assuring that no efforts would be spared to ensure the delivery of the projects on schedule.

Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr. Adebowale Akinsanya who said this after embarking on an extensive inspection tour of ongoing projects in the State, said the government was not oblivious of the difficulties being experienced by motorists, adding that concerted efforts were on to seriously bring it under control.

He said with the rains subsiding, Lagosians should expect an increased pace of work by contractors handling various projects, just as he assured that the State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode was seriously committed to the delivery of the projects.

According to him, “I have just inspected the progress of work on Airport Road, Pen Cinema Flyover, Oshodi Transport Interchange, Onikan Stadium, Oshodi-Abule-Egba Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project and JK Randle Centre For Yoruba Culture and History.

“The inspection tour is at the instance of His Excellency the Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode who has equally given contractors handling various projects across the State matching orders to expedite work.

“You see, with the rains subsiding, the State Government is leaving no stone unturned to rev up the projects and bring the truly deserved comfort to the people as well as improve on the aesthetics of the State and that is why all hands are on deck to ensure completion of the projects on schedule,” Akinsanya said.

He said the projects were deliberately embarked upon to align the State with the league of cities with world class infrastructures thus making Lagos be globally competitive, adding that the gains of the investment of the present administration in the provision of critical infrastructure would soon be positively felt on a large scale in all sectors.

On the traffic situation, the Commissioner said while potholes were being fixed day and night, the traffic management team of the State Government had equally jerked up activities, adding that other initiatives were being put in place to address the situation with the urgency required.

“As I speak to you, the Public Works Corporation has intensified their rehabilitation of potholes across the State. We were initially held back by the rains, but with the dry season now, more roads have been covered in the last one month and we appeal to Lagosians to be patient, if you have not seen them in your area, they will get their soon,” he assured.

 

See The Rot At The Lagos, Ebute-Metta Railway Station - Photos

At times when we say the national anthem and when it gets to "The labor of our heroes past shall never be in vain", its difficult either to say Amen or just keep mute, this is as a result of massive rot in our infrastructure across the country especially in railway sector, one can not but feel emotional at the amount of wastage and decay in a country of ours that's full of milk and honey.

In the late 1800s, the colony of Lagos had a stable government, legitimate trade channels and was in a period of prosperity and growth. In 1895, the colonial administrators – Governors MacGregor and Egerton – decided to develop a railway line from Lagos to the furthermost parts of Northeastern Nigeria, to open the interiors of the Southwestern Nigeria to commerce.

In Lagos, a railway terminal was erected at Iddo to connect the Lagos Island with the mainland and act as a transit stop for the trains using the railroad bridge constructed along two major road networks that connected the Island with other parts of Lagos – the Carter bridge and the Denton bridge. Also in 1896, railway construction began from the Iddo are with extensions made along the Lagos route with stops at Otta, Ifo, Arigbajo, Papa Alanto, Abeokuta and Ibadan (1901). Financial reasons hampered the further development of the railway in Southern Nigeria and proposals linking Benin and Sapale (1906) and Ibadan with Oyo (1907) came to naught.

The opening of the Lagos Steam Tramway took place on May 23, 1902, and it was operated by the Lagos Government Railway. The original line ran north-west along the waterfront, from a point near Government House and the European residential area around the Racecourse to Customs Wharf, where it turned north-east towards Ereko market and Idumota. A 95 ft-radius curve took the line north-westwards again, through Ebute Ero and over Carter bridge to the railway station at Iddo.

Due to the ongoing Lagos-Ibadan Railway, AutoReportNG decided to do an assessment tour of the proposed Lagos Station at Ebute-Metta but we met some fierce looking security men who won't allow us into the site talkless of taking pictures. We decided through the railway village to see things and to access some trains over there but what we saw is depressing and a sad story to tell.

Entering the large expanse of land of the Nigeria Railway Compound, we see lots of railway materials that are rusting away, these are materials that are meant for the expansion and maintence of the rail lines but they are littered everywhere, also we noticed that 70% of the rail tracks have been covered with bushes and this calls for questioning as if trains really pass through these tracks or if the Nigeria Railway Corporation maintenance section exists. Some buildings that are meant to serve as a stopover or as passengers hub have now become a death trap as the weeds, grasses have taken over the building.

During our tour, we noticed some new coaches which are bought by former administration (GEJ), we noticed the coaches are still new but they were parked somewhere, we can't say if they are working or not but a closer look suggests they must have been parked for quite some time as they were covered with dust.

The New Trains By GEJ

We decided to pass through the Oil Department Hub, base on the look, this is where the coaches are oiled and serviced but this looks more like a mechanic workshop and some of the trains we saw there, Lord have mercy, in all, the railway village is nothing but an eyesore.

Most of the cargo trains are old, rusty and ought to have been disposed of, some of the trains seen ought to be taken to the museum for educational purposes as they are old, outdated and non-existent.

While we are rounding off our trip, we noticed that the CCeCC has already begun the track laying in preparation for the Lagos Station and work is on-going at a reasonable pace. We also noticed various machines all stationed within the site too, the land has been cleared and work is going on at a fast pace base on what we see. We tried to get some pictures but these security guys are not customer friendly at all.

These are some pictures we are able to get from our trip, what's your take?

Rusted Materials 

Abadoned Railway 

The Oil Centre

Wasting Materials 

Rusty Cargo Trains 

Land Rover Utaric Autonomous Delivery Van With Companion Drone

It’s undeniable that autonomous transportation system is a real vision, all automotive manufacturers take this seriously as the future generation of vehicles. Today, the technology of autonomous systems is not just a fantasy, work on implementing such a system is a very advanced stage.

Land Rover Utaric is a concept of an autonomous delivery van. Inspired by Land Rover’s design DNA, this project takes growing interest around autonomous technology into a highly functional vehicle. This design proposal wants to use Utaric to transport goods, it features many advantages, one of them is the spacious cabin since there’s no need for a driver’s cockpit. As an autonomous vehicle, Utaric can operate without interruption, it won’t show any sign of fatigue and distraction, improving the safety of the other road users.

Designed by Kamil Podolak, Land Rover Utaric Autonomous Vehicle is designed to be able to communicate with each other. It means that a delivery service company can organize a fleet of autonomous vehicles easily, each unit is equipped with a supervising drone, it can setup optimal routes and help to communicate with the vehicle when there’s no access to the satellite network. Utaric can operate independently as part of the whole complex system.

Utaric is equipped with multiple sensors, cameras, and radar where they are responsible for navigation and communication between the central system and the drone. Even though it’s an autonomous vehicle, it is still possible to remotely control Utaric in a special situation when human intervention is required. Those large wheels increase clearance, allowing for efficient movement beyond asphalt roads.

Suspension and transmission elements are hidden in superstructures that become an integral part of the vehicle, thus creating a relationship between the elements of the body and wheel design. The design style of Utaric clearly represents its intended use, it also contains elements typical for current Land Rover design solutions, rectangular positional marker lights, and an extended line of rear lights, it is a continuation of the style given by the latest model of the British producer Range Rover Velar. Also, the brand’s philosophy, which is clearly associated with off-road or open-road vehicles, is an important element of stylistic identification.

The batteries are placed at the ceiling, they function not only as the power source for the drive, they also responsible as induction charging for the drone, which landing site is located on the roof of Utaric.

 

Man Came Out Unhurt As Trailer Pushed His Car From The Bridge Top To The Bush

If you are opportune to have a car and you drive safely and sound without any form of accident, you don't know God has done for you. A man named Bunkunmi has taken to the micro-blogging site, Twitter to thank God for the safety of life and those of his car occupants. According to him, Who says God doesn't answer prayer? I and all occupants of the vehicle came out unhurt.

The car is said to have been hit from behind by trailer at Ijebu Ode. The car swerved from the bridge all the way down to the bush and the occupants all came out alive and see.

The issues of trailers on Nigerian highway has been a case of serious concern to all motorists

See the wreckage of the car here