Businesses operating in the Amuwo Odofin Industrial Estate, Lagos, and motorists using the major road linking the estate to Ijesha are appealing for an urgent intervention by the Lagos State government to decongest the roads, improve accessibility to the industrial estate and prevent further disruption to commercial activities.
 
They lamented that they are facing hardship as trailers laden with containers have taken over the roads and adjoining streets, making it increasingly difficult for business owners, workers, customers and motorists to access their offices or reach their destinations.

The situation has compounded the already deplorable condition of the roads in the area, which businesses have described as almost impassable. Some portions of the roads are riddled with deep potholes, craters and gullies, yet companies and workers continue to operate in the area despite the difficult conditions.
 
Findings by The Guardian revealed that the latest crisis is largely linked to the limited capacity of Unity Bonded Terminal, which serves as a holding bay for Maersk containers in the area. With the terminal unable to accommodate all the containers coming in, trucks are reportedly forced to park on the major roads and adjoining streets while waiting to gain access to the terminal.
 
Some truck drivers interviewed by The Guardian said they often spend several days on the road waiting to either load or offload their containers.
 
One of the drivers, who identified himself as Olumide, said he had spent three days on the road waiting to offload his container because there was no space inside the terminal. Another driver, Abubakar, said empty trucks waiting to return containers to the port also contributed to the congestion, as they sometimes remained on the road longer than expected.
 
A light truck driver, Chidi, who moves goods from Festac Town to Ijesha through the industrial estate, said he now takes a longer route and hardly makes more than two trips a day instead of the initial four.
 
The development has also become a major source of frustration for business owners in the estate.
 
The Chief Executive Officer of Seamap Company, Chief Oge Obi, said the situation had made it almost impossible for him and other business owners to access their offices.
 
According to Obi, the problem could be resolved if Maersk appointed additional bonded terminals to serve as holding bays for its containers.
 
He said: “Within this area, it is only Unity Bonded Terminal that serves as their holding bay and the terminal cannot accommodate all their containers. Once the place is full, trailers carrying containers block the major road in the estate and the adjoining streets.
 
“For over two months now, I have hardly been able to go to my office. The same applies to other people who have businesses here. You can set out for the office and, on getting close, you will be told that there is no road and that the best thing is to turn back home.
 
“We are paying taxes; we are paying ground rent and we are paying salaries. Is this how we are expected to continue doing business in this difficult economy? It is frustrating, and everybody is tired of this chaos.
 
“If you go around the area, most of the containers you see belong to Maersk. You hardly see containers belonging to other shipping companies.”
 
Obi said business owners had repeatedly suggested that Maersk should appoint another bonded terminal so that containers could be distributed between different holding bays.
 
He, however, alleged that the shipping company might not have been aware of the problem their containers are causing in the estate.
 
According to him, the situation had already begun to affect businesses financially, with some companies unable to operate effectively because of the lack of access.
 
“We are now calling for a meeting of all the companies in the area to find a lasting solution to the problem. The owner of Sims Company hardly goes to his warehouse anymore because there is no accessibility to the place. The same thing is happening to several other businesses.
 
“In two months, I have only been to my office about five times. Even yesterday, as I was coming to the office, I received a call that I should turn back because there was no access to my premises.
 
“I had an appointment with someone in my office for a business transaction, but the person could not come because of the road. He later told me that he had given the business to someone else because there was no access to my premises.

I lost that business simply because there was no road,” he lamented.
 
Obi also expressed concern that Maersk might not be fully aware of the extent of the problem, arguing that the terminal operator was in the best position to communicate the situation to the shipping company.
  
“If I go to Maersk to complain, they may not listen to me because I don’t have any business relationship with them. Unity is the one they have a direct business relationship with, so they are the ones who can effectively communicate the problem to them,” he argued.
 
Obi also expressed disappointment with the response of relevant Lagos State Government officials, alleging that little had been done to address the worsening situation.
 
He said the affected businesses were planning to convene a stakeholders’ meeting involving the companies in the estate, terminal operators, the shipping company, truck operators and relevant government agencies.
 
When our reporter called Maersk Shipping Company Line on phone number, 02017002100, on Tuesday, August 8, 2026, a lady picked the call and said it was the Customers Care Unit. After listening to the issue raised against their containers in the estate, she requested for an email address and promised that “before the end of the day, the company will mail its response.” The response was not received as at the time of going to press.