Eko Bridge is one of three bridges connecting

Lagos Island Lagos Island (''Ìsàlẹ̀ Èkó'') is the principal and central local government area (LGA) in Lagos, it was the capital of Lagos State until 1957. It is part of the Lagos Division. As of the preliminary 2006 Nigerian census, the LGA had a pop ...

to the

mainland Mainland is defined as "relating to or forming the main part of a country or continent, not including the islands around it egardless of status under territorial jurisdiction by an entity" The term is often politically, economically and/or dem ...

, the others are the Third Mainland and

Carter Carter(s), or Carter's, Tha Carter, or The Carter(s), may refer to: Geography United States * Carter, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Carter, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Carter, Montana, a census-designated place * Carter, ...

bridges. The bridge was built in 1975 and is the shortest of the three bridges linking Lagos Island to mainlaind. Eko bridge was made to convey citizens faster. Bolu Akande brought up the idea at a summit of leaders In 1963 but no one listened to him till 1965. It was the first major project undertaken by Julius Berger which was approved by

Shehu Shagari Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari (25 February 1925 – 28 December 2018), titled Turakin Sokoto from 1962, was the first democratically elected President of Nigeria, after the transfer of power by military head of state General Olusegun Obasanjo in ...

who was then the Minister of Works during Nigeria's First Republic. The bridge starts from

Ijora Ijora is a settlement in Lagos, Nigeria. History Ijora was originally a swampy and water-logged village where residents coming from Lagos Island could reach their homes with the use of canoes. The establishment of a railway terminus at Iddo, a ne ...

on the mainland and ends at the Apongbon area of Lagos Island. The lagoon section of the bridge spans a distance of 430 metres. The bridge and its landward extension of 1350 metres were constructed in phases between 1965 and 1975. It serves as the preferred access point for vehicular traffic approaching Lagos Island from the

Apapa Apapa is a Local Government Area in Lagos, located to the west of Lagos Island. Apapa contains a number of ports and terminals operated by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), including the major port of Lagos State and Lagos Port Complex (LPC ...

and

Surulere Surulere is a residential and commercial Local Government Areas of Nigeria, Local Government Area located on the mainland of Lagos in Lagos State, Nigeria, with an area of . At the last census in the year 2006, there were 503,975 inhabitants, wi ...

areas of Lagos. The bridge was built by

Julius Berger Nigeria PLC Julius Berger is a Nigerian construction company, headquartered in Abuja, with additional permanent locations in Lagos and Uyo. The company is represented across Nigeria in structural engineering and infrastructure works, and in southern Niger ...

. The first phase rehabilitation plan commenced from 23 August 2014 to 27 October 2014 which lasted for 71 days. The state government announced that the rehabilitation would not necessitate its total closure rather the bridge would be rehabilitated in phase. The bridge was partially shut for rehabilitation on 4 July 2020. The Federal Ministry of Works, Nigeria, rehabilitated the second phase of the bridge from 23 October till 9 November 2021. The second phase of the rehabialiation was officially announced by the state government to commence on Saturday October 23 to November 9, 2021, by the Federal Ministry of Works. According to the report, the work will commence along Alaka-Apongbon area of the state.

References

Bridges completed in 1975 Road bridges in Lagos Lagos Island {{Commons category, Eko Bridge