INLAND WATERWAYS TRANSPORTATION AND CHANGING URBAN MORPHOLOGY OF METROPOLITAN LAGOS, NIGERIA

Urban land use globally is experiencing transformative changes due to evolving transportation systems and travel patterns. While numerous studies have explored the relationship between land based transportation and urban growth in developing countries, there is limited studies on the influence of inland waterways on urban morphology. Thus, this study examined the role of inland waterways in the changing morphology of metropolitan Lagos. Lagos Metropolis, a rapidly expanding city with significant land use transformations and reliance on water transportation, was chosen as the case study. Ten jetties were randomly selected from 41 within the study area. Land use and land cover changes from 2010 to 2020 were analyzed using the maximum likelihood supervised classification method. Geographic Information System (GIS) was employed to assess the extent of influence within a 5 km buffer around the selected jetties. The Student t-test was used to determine the significance of these changes, tested at a 5% significance level. The study revealed substantial shifts in land use patterns near key jetties such as AgboyiKetu, Ebute Ero, and Oke Ira Nla, each experiencing built-up area expansions exceeding 1,000 hectares. It also found a statistically significant difference in developed areas around the jetties, indicating a strong relationship between inland waterways and land use patterns in Lagos Metropolis. The study concludes that inland waterways significantly influence urban morphology and recommends urban planning strategies to manage future development.