Railway

NUR excited about FG’s attention to railway, advises workers

Published

3 years ago

July 14, 2021

Nigeria Union of Railway Workers has expressed satisfaction and excitement at the attention being given to the Nigerian railways by the Federal Government.
It has urged its members to reciprocate the good gesture of the Federal Government on the development of the rail transport industry through diligence, punctuality and display of a high level of professionalism.
The union gave the advice preparatory to the ground-breaking ceremony of yet another standard gauge track construction project of Kano-Kaduna rail line tomorrow (Thursday).
Addressing the congress of the members of the union in Lagos, the Secretary General of the union, Segun Esan, urged the workers to show appreciation and gratitude to FG’s quest for an effective and efficient railway through various construction of standard gauge lines and equipping the industry for greater performance.
He particularly charged them on the need to protect the new and other railway facilities against theft and vandalisation.
Esan said, “The best we can do to express our profound appreciation to the Federal Government is to get committed to this work with passion and also protect the railway facilities from theft and vandalization as if it is our personal property are aware of what it takes to build a railway in terms of capital intensiveness of the development of the industry.
“This is why we must renew our enthusiasm and passion to make Nigerian people and the federal government proud by working with greater diligence and top-notch professionalism.”
He commended the administration of President Mohammadu Buhari for raising the ante by starting the construction of 190km Lagos-Ibadan (Moniya) track construction, completing it and commencing its full commercial operation.

‘’Nigerian railway workers take cognizance of the commendable feat achieved by this administration in starting the construction of Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge from the scratch and completing it and even starting the operation within its tenure. This is worthy development that has never happened in the country before.
“If all past Administrations have been this committed to the development of the railway industry, we would have had higher rail infrastructure base and greater market share of the passenger and freight presently taken by the road mode would have come to the railway and the road network would have been saved from constant dilapidation and pressure.
‘’We should recall that the spate of infrastructure development under this incumbent administration in terms of system transition from the narrow gauge railway system to standard gauge, no doubt, has been very tremendous, consistent, and way too unbelievably contrasting to what used to be the order of the day in the past when remedial approaches were explored to salvage the railway industry all to no avail.
“This administration owns the credit for the completion, upgrading, and operation of Warri-Itakpe standard gauge railway after being dug out from its complacent state spanning over 25 years and the completion/operation of Abuja – Kaduna railway which, as we stand, is the flagship of the Corporation. We have no excuse but to tap into the lofty vision and aspiration of the federal government for a better railway system by complementing its effort with a good attitude to work.”

Esan however appealed to the FG not to make the mistake made in the past whereby locomotive engines, coaches and wagons were purchased without adequate spare parts to repair and maintain the facilities bought.
He added that the welfare and salary regime of the railway workers should be reviewed with a view to using that as means to encourage and attract young and employable Nigerians to follow career paths in the system.

Railway

Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC

Published

1 day ago

December 21, 2024

Trends Admin

Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC

The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has disclosed that the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (LRMT) trains are included in the Federal Government’s free train ride initiative for the Christmas and New Year celebrations.

The LRMT, which currently includes the Phase 1 Blue Line Rail and the Phase 1 of the Red Line Rail, operates under the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA).

This announcement was made by Ben Iloanusi, the Acting Managing Director of the NRC, during an interview on NTA News TV on Friday, following the launch of the initiative earlier that day.

While Iloanusi stated that Phase 1 of both the Blue Line and Red Line Rail projects are part of the program, LAMATA has yet to confirm this inclusion.

Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC

Railway

NRC announces special Xmas, end-of-year train service

Published

3 weeks ago

December 5, 2024

Trends Admin

NRC announces special Xmas, end-of-year train service

The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) says it will operate an end of the year special train service on all its routes across the country.
It announced this in a statement on Wednesday by its Deputy Director, Public Relations, Yakub Mahmood, saying it was in compliance with the Federal Government’s directive through the Federal Ministry of Transportation.
It however did not indicate if the special train service would be free or not.
The Federal Government last year similarly declared special train services for Christmas and New Year, which were made free for all users.
The statement added the modality for this year’s special service would be released soon.
The latest statement read, “The management of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), in compliance with the Federal Government’s directive through the Federal Ministry of Transportation, hereby informs the general public that the NRC shall operate end of the year special train services in commemoration of Christmas and New Year celebrations.
“This end-of-the-year special train service on scheduled passenger trains, is part of the government’s gesture towards an enjoyable end of the year celebration.
“Dates and modalities of the end-of-the-year Special Train Service shall be communicated in due course. We wish all our esteemed customers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year in advance.”

Railway

FG hands over $3bn Port Harcourt-Aba railway project to NRC

Published

3 weeks ago

November 29, 2024

Trends Admin

FG hands over $3bn Port Harcourt-Aba railway project to NRC

The 62-kilometre, $3.02 billion Port Harcourt-Aba railway project has been completed by Federal Government and handed over to the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC).

The Port Harcourt-Aba section is part of the larger Port Harcourt-Maiduguri eastern narrow gauge railway project, initiated under the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The project supervisor, Federal Ministry of Transportation, Ayo Dada, formally transferred the railway to the NRC during a brief ceremony held on Thursday in Port Harcourt.

He said that the project, completed in May, had significantly improved passenger movement between Rivers and Abia, thereby enhancing their economies.

“The assets handed over include dismantled tracks measuring 283.060 km, rehabilitated and reconstructed 62.800 km of subgrade and the laying of 62.800 km of rail for the main line,” Dada said.

“This includes the laying of rail for sliding lines covering 5.690 km and the reconstruction of 27 sets of turnouts at Port Harcourt, Elelenwo, Obuzor, Umugo and Aba Stations, among others.”

Dada said that with the handover of the Port Harcourt–Aba section, the Federal Government would focus on the Port Harcourt–Maiduguri phase of the project.