The Federal Government has said the reconstruction of the Ibadan-Ife-Ilesa dual carriageway will begin in February.
The Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, disclosed this during an inspection of ongoing federal road projects in Osun State.
It would be recalled that the Federal Executive Council(FEC) had on September 25, 2019, approved the reconstruction of the expressway.
Fashola stated that the road, covering a distance of not less than 112 kilometers, would cost the Federal Government N79 billion, adding that it would be handled by Kopek Construction Company.
The minister, represented by Mr Funso Adebiyi, the Director of Highways, South West, said the road, like every other road in the country, was of economic importance to the government.
Fashola noted that the reconstruction work would be completed in the next three years.
He described the expressway as one of the busiest roads in the country in terms of traffic volume, noting that the Federal Government had continued to maintain the road through palliative and maintenance work.
The minister, however, appealed to commuters plying the road to cooperate with the contractor that would be handling the project so as to ensure that the project would be delivered according to time.
“There is no doubt that the reconstruction may bring some discomfort, but we will try as much as possible to minimise the discomfort,” Fashola said.
He also said the Federal Government would complete all the ongoing federal road projects in the state.
On the 34 kilometers Ila-Orangun-Kwara boundary road, Fashola stated that the project would cost the Federal Government N5.1 billion.
He added that the government had spent N1.5 billion to complete 10 kilometers of the road.
Also, the minister said the ongoing 1 kilometers Efon-Alaye-Iwaraja-Ilesa road construction would cost the government N4 billion, adding that the Federal Government had spent N2.9 billion to complete 12 kilometers of the road.
The minister added that the 22 kilometers Lagere-Ife-Ilesa road construction would also cost the government N9 billion, noting that N3 billion had been spent on the road, while work had reached 30 percent completion.
The minister also said the government was working hard to complete the 32 kilometers Gbongan-Iwo road.
Fashola reiterated the government’s commitment to infrastructural development across the country.
He commended Kopek Construction Company for the quality job done on the ongoing road constructions in the state.
