Lagos-Ibadan Expressway Gridlock Lasts 14 Hours After Seven-Vehicle Crash at Kara

Motorists and commuters on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway were stranded for more than 14 hours on Tuesday following a multiple-vehicle crash at the Kara Bridge, which compounded traffic disruptions caused by ongoing repair works on the bridge.

The crash, which occurred in the early hours of Tuesday, involved seven vehicles and initially disrupted traffic towards Ogun State before the resulting congestion spread beyond the Long Bridge towards Magboro and into Lagos.

As the gridlock intensified, some frustrated motorists resorted to driving against traffic in an attempt to escape the congestion, creating another bottleneck for vehicles heading towards Lagos.

Our correspondents observed that motorists travelling from Lagos towards Ogun State were already trapped in traffic as early as 7am, with the situation worsening as the day progressed.

The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, in a statement on Tuesday, said its LRT Tiger Squad stationed at C3 was dispatched to the scene at 6:05am following a distress call and arrived within the projected response time.

LASEMA Permanent Secretary, Dr Olufemi Damilola Oke-Osanyintolu, identified the vehicles involved as a 40-foot container truck without a registration number, a Toyota Hilux, an interstate bus, a Hyundai Odyssey, a Sienna, a Toyota Highlander and a Mitsubishi Hilux.

He said preliminary findings indicated that the container truck developed a mechanical fault while in motion, causing its driver to lose control and collide with the other six vehicles.

According to him, LASEMA activated its incident management protocol and coordinated the response with the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority and the Nigeria Police Force to prevent secondary crashes and manage the traffic situation.

“Private towing trucks were deployed to support the recovery operation, while all the affected vehicles were eventually removed from the carriageway to the roadside. Fortunately, no loss of life or injury was recorded in the incident,” the statement noted.

Oke-Osanyintolu said LASTMA officials remained at the scene to monitor traffic and facilitate the restoration of normal movement, while the recovered vehicles were handed over to the police for documentation and further necessary action.

However, before the crashed vehicles were cleared, the congestion had already spread towards Lagos as some motorists began driving against traffic.

A motorist who identified himself simply as Jude told PUNCH Metro that motorists taking the one-way route eventually occupied three lanes, leaving only one lane for vehicles travelling towards Lagos.

“The moment the place got blocked, it was a total standstill when the crash occurred. So, vehicles started to take one-way. That was how they blocked the vehicles coming inward Lagos.

“As a matter of fact, those taking one-way occupied three lanes and left the remaining one lane to vehicles coming into Lagos,” he said.

Another motorist said he spent more than five hours in the gridlock and eventually missed an appointment.

“I ran into the traffic around 11am, and I am still here. I was scheduled for an appointment but could no longer meet up,” he said.

Although the removal of the crashed vehicles subsequently eased movement around the Kara Bridge, motorists who had driven against traffic created another obstruction at the OPIC end of the road as they attempted to reconnect to the proper lane.

A traffic official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, attributed the fresh congestion to the influx of motorists who had driven against traffic following the crash.

“The influx of vehicles taking one-way when the crash happened had blocked vehicles coming into Lagos in the process of connecting back to their lane at OPIC. That is what has caused the serious traffic you see now,” the official said.

PUNCH Metro observed that vehicles heading towards Lagos were at a standstill and unable to pass the OPIC section because of the congestion created by motorists attempting to rejoin the main carriageway.

By 5pm, the gridlock had extended beyond the Long Bridge towards Magboro, leaving motorists and commuters stranded for several hours.

Further checks by 7pm showed that the congestion had extended towards Iyana-Oworo in Lagos, with motorists also experiencing slow movement on the Third Mainland Bridge.

The spokesperson for LASTMA, Adebayo Taofiq, also confirmed that the traffic situation was worsened by another accident at the Kara axis in the evening.

“The traffic was because another accident happened this evening in the same area. LASTMA officers were there till this night,” he said in a telephone conversation with our correspondent.

The prolonged traffic congestion also resulted in increased transport fares along the affected routes, with commuters paying significantly more than the usual rates.

For instance, transport fare from Iyana-Oworo to Berger reportedly increased to N2,000 from between N500 and N700.

Similarly, commuters travelling from Iyana-Oworo to Mowe paid as much as N3,000, compared with the regular fare of about N1,200.

The incident occurred amid ongoing repair works on the Kara Bridge, which have already caused significant traffic disruption along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Motorists have faced prolonged delays since repair works began on damaged expansion joints on the bridge, with congestion previously stretching towards the 7Up Junction and other sections of the Lagos-bound carriageway.

The reduced road space around the bridge has made the corridor particularly vulnerable to severe congestion whenever crashes, broken-down vehicles or other obstructions occur.

The spokesperson for the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency, Babatunde Akinbiyi, confirmed that the crash compounded the traffic situation along the axis.

“Our men, with other traffic officials, are managing the situation. Aside from the impatience on the part of drivers, which had resulted in the gridlock…” Akinbiyi said.