The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has urged motorists in Ogun State to exercise patience and refrain from driving against traffic on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway after heavy rain caused flooding on Tuesday.
Corps Commander Oludare Ogunjobi, the Sector Commander, said the flooding prompted some motorists to ply one-way lanes, a practice that compounded congestion on the route.
“The FRSC is appealing to motorists to be patient, reduce speed and avoid driving against the flow of traffic,” Ogunjobi told NAN. He added that impatience and non-compliance with traffic rules would aggravate traffic situations.
He said FRSC personnel and other traffic managers were deployed to the expressway to manage the flow and restore normalcy. Motorists were stranded for several hours following the downpour.
Driving against traffic, locally termed “one-way”, remains a recurrent hazard on the 121-kilometre Lagos-Ibadan corridor. The FRSC says violations increase sharply during the June to September rainy season when sections at Kara, Arepo and Long Bridge are prone to flooding.
In 2023, the Ogun Command, in conjunction with LASTMA and the Police, commenced “Operation No One-Way”, which entailed arrests, fines and impoundment. The Corps also attributes a number of fatal head-on collisions on the highway to the practice each year.
Motorists have been advised to comply with officials, keep to prescribed speeds and avoid dangerous overtaking while drainage works continue.
(NAN)