The Ondo state government on Wednesday said it would not prioritize construction of flyover bridges over rehabilitation of bad roads in Akure, the state capital.
According to the government, what Akure needs now is rehabilitation of linking roads to decongest traffic rather than facing white elephant projects such as flyover bridges.
The Chief Press Secretary to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Prince Ebenezer Adeniyan stated this while featuring on a Radio Programme in Akure as monitored by Roving Reporters.
Adeniyan said, "This is the truth of the matter. We have a flyover in Ore. It was done because of the condition of the road, because of the rates of accidents and the rate of traffic. That was why the government did that, the government of Akeredolu and then we have one ongoing at the Sagari intercession.
"Do you know why the government decided to construct that (at Onyearugbulem)b? Because there were accidents on that road. Incessant accident, as a matter of fact, the last one claimed the lives of a woman and her children and the government felt it was important to do a fly over there.
"The problem with the traffic along Oba Adesida road, the solution is not a flyover. The only reason why Oba Adesida road is congested is because it's a main road, and it's because our link roads are in terrible condition.
"So if you open up the state capital, nobody will pass through the Oba Adesida road.
"If I'm coming to Ondo Road, why should I need to pass through the Oba Adesida road? If you are going to Araromi, High School, Onyearugbulem, why should I need to pass through the Adesida road?
"So if we are able to fix all those linking roads, people will not run away from those areas. It is because, maybe your vehicle may not be good enough, and you want to avoid all the bad portions of the road that is why you go through the main road. And that is exactly what we are doing now.
"Don't forget that last month, Mr. Governor approved a selection of 50 roads across the state for rehabilitation. Many Akure roads are there. Go to Owe Akala area, you go to Odi Olowo, most of those terrible roads are there for the government to fix. So if we are able to fix all these roads, the traffic congestion along Oba Adesida road will reduce.
"We have a main market in Akure, but the heavy traffic there, has nothing to do with the market, because the vehicles playing the road are not going into the market. They are just trying to connect other parts of the state capital.
"So if we are able to fix all these internal roads within Akure and you can easily go wherever you want to go without passing through Oba Adesida road, there would not be need for us to do flyover.
"What it will take to construct a flyover in Akure, if you use the same amount of money to fix all the internal roads, Akure will be like London.
"The truth of the matter is that flyover is not for decoration. It is when you have enough money, then you can now decide to let us do a face lift by consulting a flyover.
"You construct a flyover when there is an urgent need for it. Flyover is not for decoration."
Adeniyan also explained why the state government removed the concrete road divider along Oba Adesida road and replaced it with another one.
He said, "The issue is that it was an obstruction. Because it was terrible in a way that if you are on one side of the road, you won't see what is happening on the other side. That's risky. In fact, security-wise, it's not good enough for you to be on a dualized road and you can't see what is going on on the other side of the road and then aside that, it was more or less an eyesore for you to have that.
"So what Mr. Governor has done now is to replace it with something you can see elsewhere in advanced countries.
"We can't leave that place like that. And the reason why the government cannot leave it like that is because that divider has become a place where destitute will stay, where people will put their waste.
"At the end of trading in the night, people go and put their waste in the middle of the road and then when you are driving in the morning, you see there's something lining up the entire place. So what the government is doing now is to replace the divider but with something that is good enough for people to see and then you can see the other side of the road. And then there can be a little bit of allowance in some sections of it so that those who want to do a quick crossover can do a quick crossover."
