Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has revealed that arrangements have been concluded to reintroduce toll gates in 38 points across the country.Fashola made this known in Thursday when he appeared before members of the Senate Committee on Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA).
The Minister said that the reintroduction of the toll gates by the Federal Government will be consummated after completion of major highways adding that the toll gates are to be managed by the private sector.
He told the lawmakers of plans by the government to design software for the monitoring of vehicles passing through the roads.
According to him, road users would be able to pay toll through their phones, explaining that the toll collected would be used for maintenance of the highways.
“We have concluded plans to reintroduce toll gates across the country and we have finalised the design,” he stated.
“It will be managed by private sector and it will be located in the old places, 38 point across the country.
“We are only waiting for the completion of those roads before we introduce the toll gates.”
Fashola also stated that out of N25 billion budget for FERMA in the 2017 Budget, only N800 million has so far been released to the agency by the Ministry of Finance.
He also said that the N100 billion sourced through the Sukuk Bond, was yet to be released to his ministry to carry out 25 major road constructions in the six geopolitical zones of the country.
He said that FERMA could be more effective and efficient if overhauled and compeled to limit its operations to the core mandate of maintaining federal roads.
“FERMA can be the largest construction company in the country. It depends on what we are willing to put into the agency. In the past, FERMA collected monies for roads they did not construct. That has to stop in this government,” he said.
“We are working with the Army Corps to see how we can develop local content. FERMA can be biggest construction firm. The unemployment challenges we have can be reduced if FERMA is busy is every state.”
He admitted that the worst roads are located in the Southsouth and Southeast geopolitical zones, adding that an audit of bad roads showed that some of the roads were built before the 1967-1970 civil war but assured that efforts are on top gear to fix the roads.