Federal Government has revealed that the rehabilitation of the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos will cost approximately N3.8 trillion due to severe underwater structural issues.
Gatekeepers News reports that the Minister of Works, David Umahi, disclosed this after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja.
According to Umahi, underwater assessments conducted in 2013 and 2019 revealed severe damage to the bridge’s substructure caused by illegal sand mining, erosion, and corrosion of piles and piers.
“When we did a pro rata of what is to be done, if we are to rehabilitate, it came to about N3.8 trillion and if we are to do a new construction, it came to about N3.6 trillion,” Umahi said.
The FEC has approved the advertisement for public-private partnerships (PPP) to allow the private sector to bid for the rehabilitation project.
Umahi added that the council also greenlit the approval for at least seven specialist contractors to undertake comprehensive investigation, design, and bidding to reconstruct brand new bridges or rehabilitate the existing ones under the EPC+F framework.
The Federal Government’s bridge intervention program extends beyond the Third Mainland Bridge. Other bridges slated for repair include the Jalingo Bridge in Taraba, Ido Bridge in Oyo, Keffi Flyover in Nasarawa, Mokwa Bridge in Niger, and a damaged bridge on the Abuja-Kogi road. Bridges between Lagos and Ibadan, Jebba Bridge in Kwara State, and the Itokin-Ikorodu Bridge in Lagos would also be checked.
The Minister of Works said the emergency works will be articulated and forwarded to the President for approval through the Minister of Finance. Umahi also revealed that the FEC approved N493 billion for two major infrastructure projects: the upgrade of the 152-kilometre Kano-Katsina road and the construction of a new Carter Bridge in Lagos state.
