Railway
Meet Olokun, train driver who drove three Nigerian presidents
How does it feel to have driven three Nigerian Presidents at different times on the nation’s railway? Abiodun Johnson Olokun is perhaps the only Nigerian in recent history, who has the record. And he may yet break it and give more Presidents a pleasurable ride, given the envisaged sustained investment in the railway subsector.
For Olokun, humility will not make him take credit for the uncommon favour that destiny dropped on his laps. For him, outside being assignments that come in a day’s job, there is nothing more to it.
Once in a while, however, he is usually ecstatic over the feat, and like this day, when our correspondent met him, he reeled out the feat with some relish and a tinge on his face.
Olokun never dreamt of ending his career in the centennial corporation as a locomotive driver. For starters, he had an HND in Mechanical Engineering from Federal Polytechnic, Ado Ekiti, and lately BSc Computer Engineering from University of Science, Commerce and Business Administration (ESCAE) Benin.
He was never employed as a locomotive driver, but was soon drafted to handle the locomotive being among the first set of Nigerians available to take over from the Chinese engineers who were handling the rehabilitation of the narrow gauge system of the nation’s railway.
At the moment, Olokun who has spent close to two decades in the NRC has become the Assistant Chief Motive Power Officer (chiefly, he operates as the Chief Driver of the Nigerian Railway) and a top trainer of locomotive drivers employed by the corporation.
Speaking on his experience on the job, Olokun said he counted it as a privilege when he was asked few years after his employment to drive the locomotive that took President Olusegun Obasanjo to inspect the Lagos-Kajola narrow gauge in 2006, during the ground-breaking of the railway modernisation from Ikeja to Kajola in Ogun State.
The lot again fell on him when they were shopping for local manpower to drive another President, and he drove President Goodluck Jonathan from Ilorin to Offa, in 2010 when the latter launched the Offa –Ilorin train service.
The launch of the Abuja-Kaduna standard gauge was the icing on the cake.
The Abuja-Kaduna was the first standard gauge line service in Nigeria. The project commenced under Jonathan with a $500 million loan secured from the China Exim Bank. When the project was completed, Buhari was on board the train from Abuja to Kaduna under the command of Olokun in the ‘cockpit.’
He said, “I feel very great performing this national task, which I see as a great task. I’m happy to have performed this because I don’t think any locomotive driver has been opportuned to pilot three different presidents at different times’’.
Olokun said he is content being a locomotive driver. He is ecstatic about the imminence of technology transfer, which would see the Chinese transfer to local manpower requisite technology and driving.
-The Nation
Railway
Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC
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.
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Iloanusi outlined the other routes benefiting from the scheme, which include the Lagos-Ibadan Train Service, Kaduna-Abuja Train Service, Warri-Itakpe Train Service, Port Harcourt-Aba Train Service, and the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Mass Transit in Lagos. Notably, little was previously known about the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Mass Transit service until this disclosure.
“Let me mention the routes where this free train service is happening. We have the Lagos-Ibadan Train Service, we have the Kaduna-Abuja Train Service, we have the Warri-Itakpe Train Service, we have the Lagos Rail Mass Transit trains, we have the Port Harcourt-Aba Train Service, and we have what we call the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Mass Transit, which is also in Lagos,” he stated.
Iloanusi provided operational updates, stating that passengers nationwide can access free tickets online or, for those unable to do so, at train stations where they will be profiled and validated.
He noted that passengers using NRC-managed services (excluding the Lagos Rail Mass Transit) should reserve tickets via the official website, www.nrc.gov.ng, with a valid ID required. He also advised travelers to plan, arrive on time, and bring valid identification.
Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC
Railway
NRC announces special Xmas, end-of-year train service
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
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.
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“The contractor has submitted the technical specifications and maintenance manual for the Port Harcourt–Aba section to the consultants.
“The ministry is committed to completing this project, which will foster national development,” he said.
The Managing Director of the NRC, Ben Iloanusi, commended the Federal Government and the ministry of transportation for the timely completion and transfer of the project.
Iloanusi, represented by the NRC Deputy Manager (Civil), Adesegun Ogunade, said that the railway had greatly benefited Nigerians seeking affordable transportation options.
“The rail line, now in operation, has started mitigating the impact of high transportation costs caused by economic challenges,” he said.
“Train services have been running for some time and passengers have reported that it has made commuting between Port Harcourt and Aba more convenient, faster and cheaper.
“People are already experiencing the benefits of this government’s policies and programmes.’’
He assured that the Port Harcourt–Maiduguri section would also be completed in due course, emphasising that adequate security arrangements had been made to ensure the safety of workers and passengers.
FG hands over $3bn Port Harcourt-Aba railway project to NRC
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