Plans are underway to partially demolish the Iddo Bridge in Lagos next week, as preparatory work begins for a full reconstruction of the ageing structure.
The Regional Manager of Julius Berger Nigeria, Mr Thomas Christl, disclosed this on Sunday during an inspection of the bridge by the Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi.
Christl explained that three spans of the bridge had suffered extensive damage and must be replaced to restore structural integrity.
Three spans of the existing Iddo Bridge are heavily damaged and need to be replaced, he said.
He noted that construction activities would be carried out in phases to minimise traffic disruption.
What we are doing at the moment is that we are separating the two lanes – the two directions – and next week, we will shift the traffic on one direction and one half of the bridge will be demolished and rebuilt,” Christl stated.
According to him, once work on the first section is completed, traffic will be redirected to the rebuilt portion while the second half undergoes demolition and reconstruction.
When this is done, by end of March, most likely, we will shift the traffic on the new side of the bridge and demolish this side of the bridge and rebuild this bridge, he added.
The Julius Berger manager further revealed that work was also ongoing on the bridge’s underpass and drainage system.
We have already started with the drainage works, the outfall to the lagoon is already done, he said.
After the drainage works, we will remove the soil and lower the road level so that we have a higher clearance for the bridge so that no trucks can crash into the bridge anymore which was a main reason for the damages on the existing one.
Speaking on the condition of the bridge, Senator Umahi attributed the damage partly to a fire outbreak caused by illegal occupants beneath the structure.
He said the inferno affected multiple sections of the bridge.
Six spans are affected. What we have done is to re-asphalt one of the carriageways so that we drive that traffic totally over there and then remove the three spans of one carriageway,” the minister said.
Then we can divert the traffic back and demolish the second carriageway.
Umahi disclosed that the reconstruction project, estimated to cost N15 billion, is expected to be completed by June.
Part of the problem is that the headroom is about 4.5 metres high but the minimum should be 5.6 metres high; so, we are trying to achieve that minimum headroom,” he explained.
He added that progress had already been made on improving the clearance and replacing damaged sections.
They have also built a bypass route over there. Julius Berger is doing well. I hope they don’t delay the job, Umahi said.
I am directing the engineer to monitor them and report back to us to ensure that this is completed as scheduled – June.
The minister also assured that, upon completion of the repairs, the Federal Government would install closed-circuit television cameras beneath and on top of the bridge to enhance security, similar to measures taken on the Third Mainland Bridge.
