New Lagos airport in Lekki: advantages, disadvantages, opportunities.

 

The Lagos State government has agreed to build another airport in Lagos state.

So far, the domestic and international wings of Murtala Muhammed Airport have served over five million people.

The new airport will be located on the busy Lekki-Epe axis on the "island" section.

Jubril Gawat, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for New Media, confirmed this in a series of tweets on Friday.

Citing Ope George, Sanwo-Olu's special adviser on public-private partnerships (PPP), Gawat said the project is expected to start in 2023 and will be built on an area of 3,500 hectares.

The Sanwo-Olu-led government has applied for and received approval from the federal government to build the new airport in Lagos, Gawat said.

"The project is expected to commence in 2023, it will be built on 3,500 hectares of land, the master plan and aeronautical designs are in place while studies are ongoing on strategies, financing, and other issues after which the project will be launched.

"The special adviser also said that the airport, which is expected to accommodate at least five million people annually, will be built in collaboration with local and foreign investors.

Kwami Adadevoh, a lawyer and business owner, told the DAILY POST, "It is overdue. Long, long overdue.

"Lagos doesn't have enough air traffic for a city with its economic importance, and that's because the current airport is too small."

Noted filmmaker and frequent flyer Imoh Umoren agrees with Adadevoh.

"I think the new airport is a good idea," he said.

"To handle the growing number of travelers and with the industrialization of the Epe region, it will be easier for people to fly equipment and personnel close to industries," Umoren said.

Could it be that a new airport in the ever-busy region of Lagos State also has drawbacks?

"I don't see the disadvantages yet, but it could be that the revenue from the other airport will go down," Umoren added.

Adadevoh, however, pointed out that if the second access road to the Lekki Peninsula is not completed on time, there could be traffic congestion.

Many people have argued that Sanwo-Olu should complete other projects or resolve other issues in the state instead of building a new airport.

Umoren said, "Apapa should be relieved. There must be a permanent solution for that.

"But then the airport will be economically viable."