Why Karshi-Apo road takes many years

Naroka Musa leaves Karshi as early as 4:30am to enter the main city of Abuja. He does this so as to avoid the daily gridlock on the Nyanya-Kugbo road. Apart from the heavy traffic jam on the Nyanya-Kugbo road, the road makes the journey long. He travels 21 kilometers northwards to Nyanya before turning westward […]

Naroka Musa leaves Karshi as early as 4:30am to enter the main city of Abuja. He does this so as to avoid the daily gridlock on the Nyanya-Kugbo road. Apart from the heavy traffic jam on the Nyanya-Kugbo road, the road makes the journey long. He travels 21 kilometers northwards to Nyanya before turning westward to face Abuja on the crammed Nyanya-Kugbo road. He has to do this long way around because his Karshi-Apo road which is only 13 kilometers away from Abuja is dirt, still under construction.
Nyanya-Kugbo road is at the moment the only way that leads to Abuja for those coming from the north-east and south-east of Abuja city. The perpetual chaos on that road made government to consider doing the Karshi-Apo alternate route particularly for those living in Jikwoyi, Kurudu, Orozo, Gidan Mangoro, Gidan Daya, and Karshi settlements.
The contract for construction of this road was awarded in 2011 to formerly Mangovetech now Kakatar Construction Company. Expectations were high when it was announced that the contract had been awarded. Motorists and commuters hoped that in a few years, pain suffered on the hilly Nyanya-Kugbo road would end. Apart from the slow movement of vehicles on the Nyanya-Kugbo road, the undulating land makes vehicles susceptible to crashes. Hardly a day passes without an auto crash there.
Level of work
Penultimate Wednesday, our reporters who wanted to see the level of work on the Karshi-Apo road attempted to pass through the road. But they got stuck midway when it became obvious that their vehicle could not climb a 20-meter tall hill. It was a tough ride as the vehicle meandered through hills and valleys. Because of the difficult terrain, the road has numerous culverts. Sections of the road have loose chippings obviously to cover mud and make vehicular movement easier pending when asphalt will come.
Karshi locals still brave the odds, ride on the road. Motorcycles are mainly used. One of the cyclists said, “I use it [the road] but the hill [the tallest of them] is a problem. The work is progressing but the progress isn’t fast. The road should have been completed years ago. If it’s completed, in 15 minutes one will be in the city. Also, by the time this road is completed, development will come to Karshi. When there was bomb blast in Nyanya, we were promised completion of this road. The delay is much.”
Another Karshi resident who was popularly called Indigene said that the road would have been done long ago if the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) office in Karshi had not been moved into Abuja city centre. He observed that the presence of AMAC officials in Karshi would have pushed government to act faster on the road. He wondered why AMAC is in the main city.
The construction firm’s engineer who was on site said the project will be completed in six months if government releases funds as it should. According to him, the biggest challenge now is reducing from the top the 20-meter hill on the road. He said 10 meters have been taken already.  
Another staff of the company who was watching over equipment said work was suspended for workers to celebrate Christmas and New Year but the workers had started resuming work. A dump truck was at work, moving earth.

Dashed hope?  
But the hope that at the completion of works on Karshi-Apo road, the traffic trouble will ease has been dashed. This is because Apo road named Outer Southern Expressway (OSEX) which is supposed to be receiver of the expected Karshi axis traffic is already congested. City residents in Apo are already groaning under heavy traffic yoke. This means if the Apo road is not widened, it will be another Nyanya-Kugbo road kind of tale by motorists.  
This was collaborated by the Kakatar engineer: “The road [OSEX] is supposed to be four-lane. It’s only two yet government gave approval for estates there.” Numerous residential housing schemes in Apo as well as the siting of a big shopping mall by the major road constitute traffic crisis. The mall alone contributes to heavy slow movement as vehicles divert from the road into the mall and come from there to enter the road.
“More worrisome is the fact that the four-kilometer Wasa-Apo section of the road is left untouched. This is because this section is not in the contract for the Karshi-Apo road project. What this means is that even on completion of the better part of the Karshi road, motorists will still not enjoy it as part of it will be undone.”
But a deputy director in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Mrs Hellen Obiechina allayed the fears saying Apo road will be expanded to accommodate the traffic there. She said in the master plan, OSEX is a 10-lane road, i.e. it is designed to be like the Kubwa way (Outer Northern Expressway, ONEX). OSEX is to terminate on the Abuja-Lokoja road at a point in Gwagwalada. The deputy director said the four-kilometer Wasa-Apo road will be part of the OSEX extension project.
It used to be bad
It used to be terrible for those living in settlements from Karshi to Karu due to bad roads. Luckily for them, construction works on the Karshi-Nyanya road were completed on time, affording the people opportunity to drive smoothly. Now, they ask government to quickly do the Karshi-Apo road also. Last April, while on visit to the site of Nyanya terror attack, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Bala Mohammed promised that the road will get accelerated work with SURE-P funds.
When contacted, the director of Satellite Towns Development Agency (STDA), the office overseeing the project, Engr. Mohammed Soso said work has increased on the project.

The second by-pass
There is plan to construct another bypass. In 2013, government announced that a road would be built from Masaka in Nasarawa State to Tipper Garage in Mpape. The road which is supposed to be   parallel to the Nyanya-Kugbo road and OSEX is to take travelers from the eastern part to places like Minna, Kaduna and Kano. Travelers to these places have no business passing through Abuja main city. Not much was heard about this road last year.
An engineer with FCDA attributed delay in project execution to poor release of funds to contractors. He said sometimes, even mobilization funds are staggered over two years or more, adding that often money given contractor(s) is too small for appreciable work to be done.