FG standardises toll gates operation for reintroduction

Mr Babatunde Fashola, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing says the Federal Government will standardise the operation and management of toll gates across the country before reintroduction.

Fashola said this on Sunday in Abuja when he appeared on the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) flagship programme, NAN Forum.

He said the standardisation was to overcome some of the problems encountered in the past in the operation and management of the plazas.

“We are also working to overcome some of the problems of the past, accountability and transparency in the operations and management.

“And we think that technology provides us an opportunity to overcome those problems.

“So we want to standardise all of that, then we have sent our officers out because we have revolve the design actually, what we want the toll plazas to look like.

“In term of design, quality of materials, cost because we want to issue bids for people to come and bid for them.

“So that, when we are evaluating the bids, there can be proper evaluation because we are standardised.

He said the Federal Government had recorded progress in road construction and rehabilitation considering the poor state of the roads at the inception of the current administration.

“We have momentum in terms of team work, project delivery and problem solving and I think we should be seeing more cascading of results in more paces.

“In areas where our contractors are back to site, what we hear is that the journey is getting better; their travel time has been reduced and we will continue to reduce that.

“Those that use to go through bush paths now see that they can drive through the roads even though it is not finished.

“Contractors on the road sites who were laid off are back to work. So, that is a good news for them and their families to earn income,” he said.

The minister said the Federal Government was also making efforts to recover and protect its rights of way on highways to address the challenges of abuses on federal roads.

According to him, the Federal Government on each highway has a right of way of 45.75 meters from the centre line on either sides of the road.

He said the right of way of government had over the years been encroached upon by unapproved structures, trading, illegal parking of vehicles and vehicular repairs.

Fashola said the Federal Government would not renew temporary occupant of its right of way.