Aba residents, motorists groan under bad roads, traffic jams

For residents and motorists in Aba, the commercial nerve-centre of Abia State, transportation in and out of the city has been a nightmare in the last three months. Reason? The ongoing rehabilitation of some roads in the city has inflicted untold hardship on them.

Many parts of the city have been blocked either with debris de-silted from overflowing drainage channels or earth moving equipment by construction companies handling road rehabilitation works. Some roads like Umuojima, Umule, Ukaegbu, Umuola, Kamalu and Omni have been blocked and made impassable to motorists. The dilapidated state of roads in the city has often caused articulated vehicles like trucks to fall as they attempted to negotiate bad spots. Last week, a truck carrying empty beer bottles had, while negotiating a bad portion at the Ngwa High School area, fallen on a tricycle and a Toyota Sienna.

Five persons were sent to their untimely graves from the resulting impact. Another crash was also recorded at Port Harcourt Road as a truck fell at a bad portion of the road and injured three pedestrians. From one area of the city to another, it has been tales of woe due to traffic jams occasioned by bad roads. A cross-section of residents who spoke to Vanguard Metro, VM, lamented that they now spend several hours on the road daily due to traffic jams caused by bad roads in all parts of the city.

From Aba / Owerri Road to Osisioma Junction application, Faulks Road to Grand Mango, Umule to Tonimas Junction, Ukaegbu / Umuola Roads to Obikabia Junction, the situation has caused untold hardships to motorists and commuters in Aba. A typical gridlock along Aba-Owerri road caused by the Construction of drainage channels, most times stretches up to two kilometers with motorists and pedestrians unable to move. On this particular occasion, the State Governor, Dr. Okezie last, was trapped in traffic jam at the Aba Owerri Road. It took several minutes before his security details could clear the road for him as cuts start in his car waving at Residents. Even the St. Paul Road which now serves as alternative route to the scary Aba / Owerri Road, a worse form of gridlock is now being experienced as stones used to fill it have been washed away.

The Port Harcourt and Aba – Ikot Ekpene roads, which are two of the three major entry routes into Aba, have developed deep gullies and now compete with the nearby Imo River as they are completely flooded.   Commuters now have to disembark at one end of the road, wade through floodwater and trek a distance before boarding another taxi or bus to get to their destinations. As at the time VM visited the dilapidated Port Harcourt and Ikot Ekpene roads, tricycle operators were seen making brisk businesses as they now collect N70 from the Aba main motor park to the flooded area at Uratta, while the commuter finds his way through the flood to the next ‘bus stop’ where he pays another N100 to take him to the flyover junction of the Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway. It is the same with commuters going to Onicha Ngwa, Ohanze and Ikot Ekpene, Uyo and other towns in Akwa Ibom State. Due to the bad state of some of the entry points and link roads such as Faulks to Ukwu Mango/Ariaria, Umule and Umuojima to the Enugu - Port Harcourt expressway, Aba-Owerri Road which is the only motorable route has become a ‘no go area’ because of the ongoing construction of gutters. A resident of Igwebuike Street, Ohabiam, along Port Harcourt road, Michael Nwankwo,  urged  Gov. Ikpeazu to make haste to fix the bad roads in the area as businesses have closed shop while the area has been cut off from other parts of the city.

The situation has also been made worse by the deplorable condition of some streets, which would have served as alternative routes. In some of the areas, the streets have been cut-off from the main roads because of the broken down culverts and bad roads.

A bus driver plying the Aba Motor Park to Osisioma Ngwa junction who gave his name as Chikodi Eze told VM that the ongoing construction of gutters along the road causing heavy gridlock has affected their businesses as they hardly make good returns at the end of the day. According to him: “You can be held in this traffic jam for more than one hour. It is affecting us badly because sometimes our passengers will choose to disembark and trek over to a point where they can board another bus.  We are appealing to the construction company handling the road to finish the project in good time to end our sufferings.”

VM also observed that most vehicles develop faults due to prolonged gridlock in these areas, while transport fares have gone up. Commuters now pay N120 from N60 for a trip from Osisioma Ngwa Junction to Aba Motor Park, while Ngwa Road to Tonimas now cost N100 from N60. A trip from Opobo junction to Obikabia junction in Ogbor Hill, now cost N100 from N50 as the tricycle operators pass through waterside to Omoba Road since the Ukaegbu , Ehere and Umuola roads are no longer passable. Reacting to the situation, Gov. Ikpeazu, has expressed his sympathy to the people of Aba over the gridlock being experienced by motorists and other road users on the Aba- Owerri Road, stressing that it is due to rehabilitation of roads in the state.

Ikpeazu who spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Godwin Adindu, appealed to the residents of the city and commuters to endure the temporary inconveniences, as the rehabilitation work would soon be completed. He stated that as a resident of Aba, he personally goes through the traffic hurdles everyday and do appreciate the suffering of the people, adding that the sacrifice has to be made once and for all for the good of all.

 @ Vanguard news