TWENTY years after it was conceived, the Ibadan Circular Road took off successfully last year under the administration of the incumbent governor of Oyo State, Mr Seyi Makinde, with the construction of bridges and interchanges. Travellers from Lagos going to other states will no longer pass through Ibadan built-up area. From the Technical University on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, the first phase of the new road starts and comes out a few kilometers to the Asejire Bridge on the Ibadan-Ife Road.
Speaking with the media on the objectives of the Ibadan Circular Road, the state Commissioner for Public Works and Transport, Professor Daud Sangodoyin, said the project, when completed, will not only remove traffic stress from Ibadan City, it will also significantly lead to the creation of ultra-modern first-world settlements along the new road.
The 110-kilometer road project was named the Senator Rashidi Ladoja Circular Road by Governor Makinde on September 29, 2022 in honour of Senator Ladoja who conceived the project when he was governor of the state.
After the inspection of the road by Governor Makinde on December 19, 2022, the state government has provided periodic updates on the construction of six bridges, including two interchanges on the East End Wing (32 km) of the road which was awarded to Craneburg Construction Company.
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Sangodoyin, in his update, told reporters that the bridges and interchanges should be completed by June 2023, adding that “the project is progressing very well and the quality of work done so far is excellent.” He said: “The 110-kilometer circular road project is a concession, build, operate, transfer concept, which has evolved after three attempts spanning many administrations since 2003.
“The current approach guarantees Oyo State government counterpart funding to the tune of N35.97 billion. “This counterpart funding, seeded into the project to show Oyo State government’s commitment to improving investor/concessionaire confidence, is currently being used to execute the interchange and bridges scope of the 32-kilometer South-East segment of the road at about 30 per cent progress to date.”
The commissioner noted that “the overall project is currently in value engineering phase to optimise the previous design.”
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