12/10/2026
Why President Tinubu's East-West Road Decision is Sound Engineering, Not Politics
President Bola Tinubu's decision to integrate the existing East-West Road into the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway corridor, instead of cutting a fresh 130km path through virgin swamp from Ondo to Edo, is exactly the kind of leadership Nigeria's infrastructure needs: pragmatic, climate-aware, and fiscally responsible. Minister Umahi is right to call it a "wonderful engineering decision."
First, it is a geotechnical necessity. The original Ondo coastal alignment is not just "difficult terrain." The Ministry's investigations found pits over 10 metres deep of weak peat that would need to be completely excavated and replaced before a single layer of asphalt could be laid. To build a brand new highway on that soil is to invite the very failures that have plagued the East-West Road for 20 years — perpetual subsidence, cracking, and washouts. An engineer who ignores soil data to satisfy a map is not building a legacy project; he is building a liability.
Second, it is a climate adaptation masterstroke. The President did not just say "use the old road." He approved raising the East-West Road by two metres in flood-prone sections to stay above present and projected flood levels. This is the first time a federal highway in the Niger Delta is being deliberately designed for climate change. Abandoning the East-West Road to build a new coastal route would have left the existing road — the lifeline of the Niger Delta — to die, while creating two vulnerable roads instead of one resilient super-corridor.
Third, it is value for money and speed. Section One of the Coastal Highway — 47.47km — is already completed and ready for commissioning, and over 30% of Sections 3A and 3B is done. By leveraging the East-West Road alignment, government avoids duplicating bridges, compensations, and years of sand-filling in the most expensive terrain in the country. Critics who quote N7.5 to N12 billion per kilometre for the inland route forget that building on deep peat on the coastline costs far more per kilometre and fails faster. The savings can now be used to finish Sections 4A/4B in Ogun/Ondo and Section Five in Akwa Ibom simultaneously.
Finally, it connects, not divides. The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway was never meant to be a scenic drive that touches every fishing settlement. It is President Tinubu's first legacy project — a national economic spine from Victoria Island through Ogun, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom to Cross River. By fusing it with the East-West Road, the President ensures that Warri, Port Harcourt, Eket and all communities along that axis get a world-class elevated highway they have demanded for decades, while Ondo still gets 40km of new coastal highway in Sections 4A/4B.
True coastal development is not about drawing a line on the Oluwatoyin Durowaiye . It is about building a road that will still be there in 50 years, above floodwaters, carrying goods, tourism and jobs. That is what President Tinubu has chosen. The Coastal Highway Must Be Built to Last, Not Just to Impress
Written By Fattykolly Ibn Alimi
