By BANNERNEWS Reporter, Lokoja
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Kogi State has attributed Tuesday’s massive gridlock on the Abuja–Lokoja highway to a crash involving a truck and a bus.
Sector Commander, Tenimu Yusuf Etuku, said the accident occurred around 2:00 a.m. near the Naval Base axis of the Banda–Lokoja expressway, leaving the vehicles blocking a critical section of the road.
Motorists and commuters were stranded for hours as traffic built up across multiple points, stretching from Natako in Lokoja through Banda to Magajia, and extending towards Kontokarfe and Gegu as of 5:00 p.m.
Etuku explained that impatience among drivers worsened the situation, with many resorting to driving against traffic, thereby compounding the congestion.
He said FRSC personnel, supported by naval officers, struggled to access the crash scene promptly due to the already locked-down traffic, delaying the removal of the obstructing vehicles.
“While efforts were ongoing to clear the obstruction, more vehicles kept joining the queue, further worsening the situation,” he said.
The sector commander added that although the wreckage was eventually cleared and smaller vehicles were allowed to pass, trucks and articulated vehicles faced difficulty navigating a failed portion of the road currently under repair.
He, however, noted that traffic began to ease gradually following the removal of the obstruction.
Meanwhile, some motorists expressed fears that stranded commuters might be forced to spend the night on the highway, citing the slow pace of movement, especially around the damaged section of the road.
