The Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos will be closed to traffic for three days from July 27, for investigative work, Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola has said.
Fashola, who spoke, yesterday on the Channels Television breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), said the shutdown was necessary “to really do an examination just to be sure that there has been no material deterioration beyond what we procured”.
The minister, who debunked the reports that the bridge would be closed for 27 months, said, “The first message we sent out was that it was going to be closed for three days from July 27”, adding that the duration of maintenance would only be determined after the report of the investigative work has been received and extent of deterioration known.
He said the investigation would have been carried out earlier but the need to reduce the inconveniences that would accompany the closure compelled government to shift the time to a more convenient period when children would be on vacation and when fewer vehicles were likely to be on the bridge.
He said: “We thought that if we allowed the children to go on vacation first it would reduce the number of vehicles that needed necessarily to be on the road and ultimately reduce the amount of inconvenience…
“I think it is later in the year or early next year that the repairs will then start.”