Merchants Transform Agege Motor Road Into Dumpsite, Raising Concerns

Despite the existence of huge rubbish bins supplied by the Lagos State Waste Management Authority, there is worry about Oshodi market vendors’ indiscriminate dumping of trash at Agege motor road, which has transformed the road into a dumpsite (LAWMA).

Drivers and commuters are concerned that the attitude has persisted, causing gridlock that makes it difficult for pedestrians to cross the street.

The multi-billion dollar Oshodi interchange, they said, has also been destroyed by the revolting sight, as filth surrounds it and gives it a foul smell and appearance.

The road constantly floods after a rainstorm, and trash floats on the water, making it almost impossible for drivers and pedestrians to move about.

Philip Okoye, a commuter, claimed: “Traders and cart pushers are ruining the route by indiscriminately depositing trash. Despite the fact that there are trash cans along the road for their use, people continue to throw trash there. For pedestrians, this makes the street impassable and offensive.

A driver also claimed that the lane was becoming narrower due to waste encroaching on a section of the road.

This, in his opinion, is one of the causes of the traffic on the Agege motorway.

Residents of have also complained about the careless disposal of trash across the neighborhood. According to The Guardian, landfills in places like Okoya Road, Boundary Market, Amukoko, and Alaba-Rago Market, among others, have been transformed into by cart pushers, posing a risk to human health and the environment.

Momodu Abudu, a local of the Boundary region, said that used household goods, construction trash, and other products are often thrown along the roadside and at undesignated dumping sites, putting the neighborhood at danger of flooding and infections.

The trash restricts mobility since it blocks a portion of the road, creating congestion and making it hard for vendors to sell their wares, he said. Another local, Ebi Ikelamon, lamented the frequency with which trash is dumped on the street and said that this limits the drainage system, which results in flooding and the breeding of mice and insects. She requested immediate government action.

Ibrahim Odumboni, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of LAWMA, responded by stating that the Central I district provides service to Agege Motor Road.

He claims that while the area is serviced at least twice each day, rubbish is routinely dumped on the road since the homeowners don’t containerize their trash or wait for PSP to come and pick it up.