Join our Telegram group and receive breaking and trending news updates directly on your phone.
Join for News Updates ✕
By Dada Ahmed in Lokoja.
(C) Facebook.
Many drivers, particularly commercial ones, have been forced into involuntary leave due to a severe traffic gridlock on the Lokoja–Abuja highway in Kogi State.
One commercial driver, Aliyu Mohammed, told our correspondent that the situation was “not funny,” adding that he had suspended operations, waiting for the gridlock to clear.
The Reporters also observed that passengers travelling from Lokoja to northern Nigeria, whose journeys were not urgent, have postponed their trips for the time being.
Our correspondent reporting from the Kotonkarfi axis on Monday, gathered that the logjam began when an articulated vehicle broke down, obstructing the road, compounded by ongoing reconstruction works.
Passengers who spoke with our correspondent expressed growing anxiety and exhaustion, noting that their hours had stretched into uncertainty.
Collins Nwachukwu, travelling from Enugu to Abuja, described the ordeal as “a journey that quickly turned from routine to a test of patience and nerves,” urging authorities to find a lasting solution.
He said that what began as a normal Sunday journey for him and co-passengers soon degenerated into hours of crawling traffic, near standstill movement, and mounting unease.
“I can’t imagine spending over 24 hours on this stretch and still not reaching my destination,” he lamented.
Scenes along the highway painted a picture of discomfort of passengers with women, children, the elderly shifting uncomfortably in their seats, and youths pacing anxiously, all grappling with the sour effects of prolonged stoppage.
Officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) were present, working to assuage the situation and calm the frayed nerves of stranded passengers and drivers.
