Travellers plying the Niger Bridge at Onitsha, Anambra State are still subjected to traffic gridlock on the old bridge despite the temporary opening of the newly built second Niger Bridge by the Federal Government.
Some motorists who spoke with newsmen on the foot of the old bridge at the Asaba end, said the point of the diversion to the new bridge allows only one vehicle to pass through to connect the new bridge, leading to a major traffic jam.
They said the construction company should have widened the entrance to take more vehicles out to the new bridge to avoid the traffic that was built and stretched far.
“The gridlock built by this narrow route discouraged many motorists from taking the new bridge. They ply the old bridge thereby increasing the traffic on it.
“Also, because no big trucks were allowed to use the new bridge, the many trucks plying the route still create gridlock on the old bridge even though security operatives and officers and men of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) were on hand to help in controlling and directing traffic”, one of the motorists claimed.
The traffic situation pushed transport fares up as Asaba to Onitsha rose N100 from N700.
