Gridlock at the Mowe end of Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Saturday left hundreds of motorists and commuters stranded.

The traffic jam resulted from a petrol tanker that fell in front of NIPCO Filling Station, Mowe.

The gridlock was worsened by the ongoing road construction in the area, with many commuters, especially those travelling out of Lagos spending several hours in traffic.

The tanker, which fell around 3 pm and spilt its content, was cleared around 8 pm.

It was learnt that some miscreants flooded the road to scoop fuel as men of the Federal Road Safety Corps blocked the expressway from and to Ibadan on both sides for the trans-loading of the fuel.

A commuter, Gbenga Adelaja, said he left Ojodu-Berger around 4pm for Ibadan, Oyo State, to spend the weekend with his family but got trapped in the gridlock, adding that he terminated the journey after spending about five hours on the spot.

He said,

“I work at a company in Ikeja and because of the volume of work in the office, I have not been able to see my family in the last two weeks. I boarded a bus to Ibadan from Ojodu around 4pm and met the traffic at Mowe.

“This is 9pm and the tanker has yet to be removed. I am already tired. I can’t continue with the journey again,” Adelaja told our correspondent on the telephone from the scene.

A motorist, Samuel Davies, said the traffic had extended beyond Orimerunmu, some distance from Mowe, as of 7.45 pm.

“I had to turn back to Lagos. I will pass the night at a friend’s house. I spent four hours expecting the traffic to ease out. Commuters inside commercial bus drivers disembarked after waiting for hours. Many of them resort to trekking,” Davies, a resident of Mowe, said.

The FRSC Sector Commander in Ogun State, Clement Oladele, said the tanker was removed around 7pm and normalcy restored.