Gabrielle Rockson

During my one week stay in Nigeria for my grandma’s 80th birthday, my family and I went to Oluyole estate in Ibadan to visit our Pastor, who has a house there (was also on holiday). Ibadan is the third most largest population and largest geographical city, in Nigeria and Oluyole is an estate in Ibadan.

Although seeing my Pastor was delightful, not to mention the beauty of his house, the thing that was not so lovely, was getting there. This was due to the roads.

Driving on completely rough and unpaved roads, the car bounced repetitively as it drove over the various bumps. The wheels and bottom of cars were covered in mud and dirt. To avoid damaging the car, we drove extremely slow like we were in a traffic jam, when really it was just the roads. There was even an abandoned tank truck that had crashed and was blocking one of the roads. At one point our driver did not know the way so we asked some riders on ‘Okada’ (motorcycle taxi) If they could show us the way by riding in front of our car and they refused. Even though they would get paid, they did not want to show us due to the roads.

Consequences of unpaved roads:

Damage to Vehicles – Tyres can become punctured and the inside shoulders can become damaged due to the roads causing cracks in them. Sudden bumps in the road damage car suspension (system of tyres) and steering. Car oil sumps can also get damaged by the bumps, causing oil spillages. A vehicle’s lifetime is also decreased.

Increases the risk of car accidents – Damage done to car suspension and steering can eventually cause a high-speed crash in the vehicles journey. Drivers and riders of ‘Okada’ (motorcycle taxi) and bicycles can lose their stability due to the unevenness of the roads, causing them to go in the path of another vehicle.

Increases the risk of health issues – Breathing problems could occur for pedestrians as unpaved roads generate a lot of dust in dry periods, causing air pollution. Heart and lung related conditions can be caused when the dust is inhaled.

Damage to the environment – Unpaved roads have greater risk of erosion; erosion of the roads can cause pollution to waterways in the gutters. Oil spillages from damaged car oil sumps, increase the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, causing global warming. Not to mention the damage oil does to the health of animals.

Increased cost of maintenance – Due to frequent damage caused by the bad road, vehicles constantly need repairing.

Other significant issues – In an emergency, the drive for the police, ambulance or fire truck, will be delayed due to the terrible unpaved roads. Therefore, the time taken to get to their emergency is increased. This can put the lives of people, who are urgently waiting for them, at risk.

To avoid these issues, the roads need the attention of the Oyo state government. Reading their website, I came across the ‘welcome address’ of the Governor, Abiola Ajimobi. He stated, ‘We shall use our God given resources to improve improve the quality of life of our present and future generations.’

Therefore, as he said, I believe that the government should use their God given resources to have these roads paved, which will improve the quality of life for the local people in Oluyole estate. This should be a priority.