Following the successful completion of Road Section 2 of the newly upgraded and expanded 49.4-kilometre Eti-Osa Lekki-Epe Expressway, Lekki Concession Company Limited (LCC), the Concessionaire, today announced the formal opening of that road section, which includes Conservation Plaza, the second Toll Plaza on the expressway.  Motorists, however, are not being charged  any tolls for using that section of the road. Road Section 2 covers kilometres 6 to 15 of the Eti-Osa Lekki-Epe Expressway, that is, from Marwa Bus Stop to near Ikota Bridge, and has been certified as substantially complete by the Independent Engineer.

Motorists are already enjoying the benefits and convenience services offered by LCC on that section of the road, although road users are currently not being charged tolls for using it. 

LCC also announced the opening of more dedicated e-Tag lanes at the Admiralty Circle Plaza, exclusively to ensure faster and more convenient passage, and to enhance a better driving experience, for motorists who use the eTag electronic payment device to pay for their passages through that toll plaza.

Opuiyo Oforiokuma, Managing Director/CEO of LCC,  said that these milestones were among a number of positive initiatives being taken by LCC to make commuting on the Lekki axis more convenient and pleasurable for users of the expressway, which has been adjudged as a world-class piece of modern infrastructure comparable with roads in more developed countries around the world. "It is our constant preoccupation at LCC to ensure that users of the Eti-Osa Lekki-Epe Expressway have a good driving experience each time they use the road. Our intent is for every single user of the expressway to make his or her journeys through the Lekki axis as conveniently and pleasurably as possible.  We are therefore pleased to intimate our various stakeholders of these new developments", he said.

 Throwing more light on the newly opened Conservation Plaza, which is situated near Chevron Headquarters and the Nigerian Conservation Foundation, Mr. Oforiokuma explained that LCC's not charging any tolls for now is in accordance with a directive from the Lagos State Government that no tolls should be collected until the State Government has provided the Alternative Route around that toll plaza. Already, work is in progress on the 3.4-kilometre Alternative Route being constructed by the State Government, to serve as alternate passage for motorists who do not wish to pay tolls when tolling eventually commences at the second plaza. Basically, Alternative Routes enable motorists to bypass the toll plazas while they can still continue their journey back on the expressway without paying any money for using the LCC facilities. The first Alternative Route is situated immediately after Mobil filling station via Yesufu Abiodun Oniru-City of David-Market road.

 The Managing Director added, "Our not charging tolls for now is in keeping with a Lagos State directive for tolls not to be charged on any road section where Lagos State has not yet provided the Alternative Route to enable road users that do not wish to pay tolls, bypass the toll plaza situated in that road section. So, this directive is applicable to the Conservation Plaza as well."

On the provision of additional e-Tag lanes, he said "LCC's strategy from the outset has always been to increase the number of lanes dedicated to e-Tag users as more road users take up the electronic payment option.  In this way, we have planned to optimize road user convenience as they pass through the toll plaza, and to minimize the build-up of queues."

He assured that in addition to quicker service at the toll plaza, e-Tag users will be able to use their e-Tags in any of the other lanes without having to pay cash, even as he promised that more dedicated lanes will be opened as road usage patterns may dictate, especially with the opening of the Conservation Plaza.

 Mr. Oforiokuma expressed the gratitude of LCC to the various stakeholder groups for believing in the Eti-Osa Lekki-Epe Expressway project, describing it as a progressive step forward in the effort to bridge the huge infrastructure gap in the country. He also thanked the several thousands of customers that have opted to pay for their tolls using the e-Tag electronic payment device, some of whom he acknowledged had even registered before the commencement of direct tolling on Sunday 18, December 2011. "Your support for this road infrastructure project is highly valued by all at LCC", he declared.