The Chairman  of Oha Elimgbu Council, Chief Ben Enyidah Utchay, has appealed to the Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, to consider building an overhead bridge at Tank junction in Rumuokwuruosi to ease vehicular movement and promote business growth in the area.
Chief Utchay made the call at the weekend during a chat with newsmen at Elimgbu in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the state.
He said that the appeal became necessary in view of the hardship being suffered by motorists and business owners in the area due to traffic gridlock.
The community leader said that the construction of a flyover at Tank junction would not only reduce traffic congestion but would also open up business growth within Elimgbu, Eneka, Atali and Igwuruta axis.
He pointed out that the heavy traffic gridlock at the Tank junction, especially during rush hours, was responsible for slow business growth around the area.
The community leader who is an hotelier, noted that there was a sharp drop in rent at the aforementioned communities due to lack of tenants in the area.
He maintained that some business owners and prospective tenants always avoided the area due to traffic congestion.
Our correspondent who visited the area reports that the Tank axis of Rumuokw-uruosi now experiences serious traffic congestion on daily basis as vehicles spend reasonable man hour before moving from one spot to another.
Chief Utchay commended Governor Wike for the construction of internal roads in the area, saying before the advent of his administration, the community was experiencing hardship due to poor network of internal roads.
He, however, appealed for regular power supply in the area, saying “presently, the challenge we have is poor power supply. If our present 11 KVA lines can be converted to 33 KVA and the transformers changed, I think we will feel better”.

By: King Onunwor