The federal government says the four toll gates along the 260-km Abuja-Keffi-Makurdi expressway conform with the requirements of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC).

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, while responding to questions on the tolls in Abuja, explained that the law establishing the ICRC prescribes the minimum and maximum requirements for tolling of roads on concession.

Mr Umahi was reacting to a question about concerns raised by some commuters about the number of tolls on the newly delivered expressway.

Although the toll gates are yet to be operational, the commuters along the route have raised the concern that four points for payment of tolls on a 260-kilometre stretch of road will be burdensome.

“The total length of that road is 260 kilometres, and it is dualised, which means you are talking about 520 kilometres, and I don’t think that we have more than four toll gates on that road.

“There is a law establishing an infrastructure concession regulatory commission, and they have the minimum requirements and maximum requirements for tolling.

“We have followed that law, and we have also set up a committee because we are doing cashless collection on the road.

“The committee members are meeting with us next week, and they will tell us how to go about that because there are a lot of people who do not know how to read and write when it comes to ICT,” the minister said.

The minister, on October 17,  inaugurated the committee on the implementation of a cashless tolling system on the road.

According to Mr Umahi, the cashless tolling system is a strategic programme under the Highway Development and Management Initiative to promote a strong and sustainable transportation ecosystem.

The committee’s tasks included designing the cashless system, establishing relief stations with essential services such as supermarkets, clinics, and security outposts, and ensuring improved security along the highway.

Mr Umahi had stressed: “Within 10 minutes of any incident along the route, security people will be able to respond.”

The Abuja-Keffi-Markurdi road project was procured under the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction-Finance (EPC+F) model.

The road, executed by the China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. (CHEC), was funded up to 85 per cent by China Exim Bank, with the 15 per cent counterpart funding from the federal government.

The project cost $542 million, and with CHEC handling it, China Exim Bank provided 85 per cent ($460.8 million) of the funding in the form of Preferential Export Buyer’s Credit.

A section of the agreement states that the company will toll the road and then recoup the money so the government can pay back the loan segment of the project.

(NAN)