Lagos rail: December completion date sacrosanct, Yaba market to go, says Sanwo-Olu

The December deadline for the delivery of the first two rail projects being developed by the Lagos State Government, the blue and red lines, is sacrosanct, the state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has stated.

He also said the market at Yaba Train Station would be removed and the traders relocated for uninterrupted operation of the new train around the area.

Sanwo-Olu stated this on Monday, assuring Lagosians that the fourth quarter of this year’s completion time set for completion of the rail projects in the state would not change.

He spoke during an on-the-spot assessment and inspection tour of rail projects at Ikeja, Yaba, Ebute Meta and Marina stations.

The red and blue lines are part of the intermodal transportation system of the Sanwo-Olu administration in reducing gridlock and ensuring interconnectivity in different parts of the state.

When completed, the 37 kilometre red line rail project will link Agbado to Marina, while the 27.5 kilometre blue line rail project will run from Okokomaiko to Marina.

Speaking to journalists at the Marina Station of the rail project, which is under construction, Governor Sanwo-Olu expressed satisfaction with the pace of work at the stations, noting that the contractors were on course and hoped that they would round off work on the blue and red line rails according to schedule for commercial activities this year.

He said, “Our promise on the blue and the red line is still on course. We believe tha, by coming on a quarterly basis to supervise them, we would ensure that before the end of this year, we will see the trains on top of the tracks. That is our commitment and we will begin to monitor and check ourselves.

“It is a very iconic and landmark project that we are truly proud of. On behalf of the government, I want to commend all of our contractors because they are very committed. They have assured us that whatever it takes, they will complete all of the projects on schedule and on budget.”

Governor Sanwo-Olu, who was accompanied by some of his cabinet members and heads of agencies, said the inspection tour to the blue and red line rail project stations was part of the promise made by his administration to monitor the pace of work in the areas on a quarterly basis.

The governor, who promised to intensify supervision and monitoring of the projects quarterly to facilitate speedy completion, also commended the contractors for keeping up with the timeline at the stations visited, considering improvement at the sites of the projects.

“We embarked on this similar tour about three or four months ago and we did mention that we would be doing it every quarter so that we can see how far the constructions are going. As we all have seen, I am happy to report that the construction is going on according to schedule. All the contractors are here even today not being a working day, they are all on-site working,” the governor said.

Sanwo-Olu also disclosed the plan by the state government to relocate the market around the train station at Yaba as the government is engaging the concerned stakeholders on how best to relocate traders to another place.

During Monday’s tour to the four stations inspected by Sanwo-Olu, there were significant improvements in construction works at the sites of the Ikeja, Yaba, Ebute-Metta and Marina stations, compared to September 25, 2021 visit to the sites.

At the Ikeja Station, which will be the main station for the red line project, the station was at foundation level in September but the project is now at the second floor level, remaining a floor before they will get to the third floor, which is the final floor.

The road work at Ikeja as well as the overpass from Obafemi Awolowo to Agege Motor Road is also ongoing.

At Yaba site, about three months ago, the contractor was at the excavating stage but they are now at the decking to go to the second floor in line with the matching order to the contractor to ensure that they keep to the timelines and the deadline.

The Ebute-Meta Station is far ahead of delivery because the contractor has finished the carcass of the station as Sanwo-Olu and his entourage during the tour to the station were able to walk into the station safely.

There are also great improvements in the pace of work at the Marina Station, as beams meant for the construction of the station have already been precast and kept in a safe place.