A Lagos-based software company, Vastcoin, has warned against the construction of a public toilet beneath the Ikeja bridge, noting that constant water flow and discharge from the facility could cause structural cracks and potentially lead to collapse. 

The company called on state agencies to halt the project immediately. It petitioned the Lagos State Ministry of Environment and the Ikeja local government chairman over the construction of toilet blocks between Nos. 1 and 2 Obafemi Awolowo Way, Ikeja, warning that continuous water discharge could weaken the bridge’s supporting columns. 

The company wrote to several state agencies in April, including the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority (LASPPPA), and the Nigerian Railway Corporation.

In the screeds seen by Peoples Gazette, the company questioned the wisdom of building the public toilet between the columns anchoring the bridge and whether the agencies had approved its construction. 

“A public toilet facility is being erected directly beside the four primary load-bearing columns supporting the bridge—columns that rise approximately 14 meters and are fundamental to the structural integrity of the entire span,” the company said on April 15. “Such construction activity, especially unapproved in such proximity to these supports, is a gross violation of engineering safety principles.” 

According to the company, the existence of a railway adjacent to the toilet construction site increases the likelihood of structural fatigue.

“This danger is further intensified by the presence of an active railway line adjacent to the site,” Vastcoin noted. “The continuous vibration from passing trains already exerts dynamic stress on the bridge structure. When combined with the added instability that may result from poor drainage, soil erosion, and unauthorised construction around the foundation, the risk is no longer theoretical; it becomes an accelerating pathway to structural failure. This is how preventable disasters happen.”

The Lagos State Ministry of Environment told The Gazette that it visited the site two weeks ago and suspended construction.

Despite the order of suspension, construction was still ongoing at the site on Monday, The Gazette learnt. 

The spokesperson for the Lagos State Ministry of Environment referred further enquiries to the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, but Oluyinka Olumide, the ministry’s commissioner, did not respond to an enquiry seeking comment on the matter.

Mr Olumide did not answer questions on whether the Lagos State government approved the toilet project and whether an Environmental Impact Assessment was conducted before construction.

Obinna Okoli, a civil engineer based in Abuja, told The Gazette that an Environmental Impact Assessment is essential before undertaking any construction near or beneath a bridge, as its findings would determine whether the project poses structural risks.

The physical planning commissioner also failed to disclose whether the government is aware that the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) operates a similar toilet facility just a short distance from the new project.