Umahi: Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway’ll be tolled after inauguration

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, says the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway will be tolled after its inauguration.

Umahi made this known during an inspection tour of the project on Saturday, January 10, 2026.

The minister said: “I must emphasise that this road is going to be tolled and by the contractor (Hitech Construction Company Limited), it is part of the package.

“l will be inviting the contractor to give us the programme, I don’t want to open this permanently for traffic and then we begin to talk about tolling.

“The contractor has to give us the programme and begin to build infrastructure before the end of April. So, we have to toll this route as soon as we complete it and as soon as it is commissioned.”

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On the impact of challenges (following realignment of the highway) on the project budget, Umahi said there would be no room to increase the budget further.

Umahi added: “We have concluded the re-measurements and we are a country with a lot of other issues and we have gone to the Bureau of Public Procurement; so, there is no ‎opening to increase the project further.

“We have a total of N170 billion increments ‎on the project as a result of this and‎ diversion of the projects to save those high-rise buildings at the beginning of the ‎project, the shore protection we encountered and then a lot of refuse dumps that were evacuated –  some up to 15 metres deep and  stretching over many ‎kilometres.

“Hitech has to be at this risk and that is part of its contribution in building our nation.”

The Star