Motorists and commuters travelling between Abuja and Lokoja were left stranded on monday 19th January as the major federal corridor experienced yet another severe traffic gridlock, worsening travel delays and frustration on one of the busiest routes in Nigeria’s central transport network. The closure, stretching for several kilometres in parts of Kogi and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), effectively brought movement along the road to a standstill for hours, with vehicles crawling or at a complete halt.
Commuters trapped in the logjam reported that traffic began accumulating from early morning, with the worst-affected sections near Kabba Plaza and the Bassa Barracks junction, where sheer vehicle volume combined with road damage, potholes and inadequate traffic management compounded delays. Many passengers including commercial drivers, passengers and traders expressed deep frustration over the lack of visible intervention by traffic authorities as cars, buses and articulated trucks remained immobile for extended periods.
Residents and commuters said that what is normally a two- to three-hour journey had extended into a six- to eight-hour ordeal, forcing travellers to abandon vehicles and negotiate alternative routes on foot. Some motorists blamed the worsening gridlock on poor road conditions, including potholes and uncompleted repairs, while others pointed to increased commercial and haulage traffic that the federal road agency appears overwhelmed to manage.
Officials from the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) have previously acknowledged the dilapidated state of stretches of the Abuja-Lokoja Road, but commuters say remedial action has been inconsistent, leaving several sections exposed to further erosion and potholing, a situation that becomes more pronounced in the rainy season.
Security and transport analysts say recurring congestion on this strategic link not only hampers mobility but also inflates transport costs, disrupts supply chains, and impacts economic activity between the Federal Capital Territory and neighbouring states. Traders who rely on the route to deliver goods to major markets in Abuja, Lokoja and beyond worry that long delays and wear-and-tear on vehicles are driving up costs for consumers.
Representatives of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Nigeria Police Force’s traffic units were deployed to key chokepoints during the late afternoon, directing vehicles and attempting to ease the logjam. An FRSC spokesman reiterated calls for motorists to plan journeys outside peak hours and obey traffic officers’ directives while urging government agencies to accelerate road rehabilitation and traffic decongestion strategies.
Commuters expressed hope that a comprehensive fix beyond intermittent patchwork will be rolled out, warning that repeated gridlocks could discourage interstate travel and have broader implications for commerce, education and daily livelihoods in the central Nigeria corridor.
