Railway
N3.2bn eastern rail rehabilitation begins today after Buhari flag-off
President Muhammadu Buhari will be performing the groundbreaking ceremony for the commencement of rehabilitation work on the eastern rail corridor today, March 9, 2021.
The cost of the project is put at N3.2bn.
Minister of Transportation, Mr Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, who confirmed this recently, also said the President had also approved the redirecting of the eastern rail line to two new spurs: Abakaliki in Ebonyi State and Awka in Anambra State.
The eastern corridor is a narrow-gauge rail track that stretches from Port Harcourt through the South-East, Middle Belt, North-East and terminates in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.
Amaechi also said the Federal Government was still negotiating loans for the Lagos to Calabar standard gauge rail project.
Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, Fidet Okhiria, an engineer, said the Port Harcourt to Maiduguri reconstruction project had earlier been awarded.
Okhiria said, “What we want to do now is to reconstruct Port Harcourt to Maiduguri, a contract of N3.2bn has already been signed and work will commence soon.”
Amaechi, a former Rivers State governor, has been criticised by some South-East leaders of ignoring the region in railway development he is spearheading for the Buhari administration.
The new standard gauge rail line from Lagos to Ibadan is substantially ready and a skeletal service has commenced. Only recently, the groundbreaking event for Kano-Maradi rail line, also a standard gauge, was held.
Two other modern rail lines already completed and running are Abuja-Kaduna and Warri-Itakpe – Lokoja.
But the minister, responding to the criticism, had said contrary to the claim of exclusion, there was only delay in the execution of the modern eastern rail line (standard gauge).
He attributed the delay to bureaucratic bottlenecks caused by the Public Procurement Act.
Amaechi said, “Sometime in 2017, we placed an advertisement for rail from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri and that is what the law expects us to do. We cannot skip the law on construction of standard gauge.
“Again, even the narrow gauge construction does not only concern the South East; the same narrow gauge transverses Port Harcourt to Maiduguri.”
He further explained that the government could only apply funds to projects as loans were approved.
The minister said, “The President insists on rule of law and the law passed by the National Assembly in terms of public procurement is very tedious and not easy to conclude; it takes a very long time.”
He also said, “For the railway you want to do from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri is about 12 billion dollars and that is one-year budget of Nigeria. Therefore, everything is done systematically. We cannot do all the projects at the same time.
“What we are doing is, as we get the loan approved, we execute the project. Currently, we are following due process.”
Railway
NRC increases trips on Abuja-Kaduna route from four to six
NRC increases trips on Abuja-Kaduna route from four to six
The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has announced an increase in the number of trains on its Abuja-Kaduna Train Service (AKTS) route in response to rising demand based on its customer feedback.
A statement signed by the NRC Deputy Director of Public Relations, Yakub Mahmood, on Wednesday, said the number of trains had been increased to six from four, running Monday to Friday during peak periods.
This development, it added, aimed to enhance customer satisfaction by making commuting more convenient and accessible on the route as well as tackling complaints of ticket racketeering.
The statement quoted the acting Managing Director of the NRC, Ben Iloanusi, as saying that a five-month trend analysis revealed a 22 per cent increase in new passengers registering on the ticketing platform for the Abuja-Kaduna route.
The surge, he said, showed a growing preference among Nigerians for train travel as a comfortable, reliable, and safe commuting option.
The statement read, “The Nigerian Railway Corporation, reaffirming its commitment to responding to customer demands, improving customer satisfaction, and tackling complaints of ticket racketeering, has increased the number of train services from four to six from Monday to Friday when demand tends to peak on its AKTS route.”
The NRC also noted that similar trends had been observed on the Lagos-Ibadan, Warri-Itakpe, and Port Harcourt-Aba routes, with efforts already underway to enhance services along these routes as well.
The acting MD assured Nigerians of the increased presence of NRC senior management across all train service routes to drive continuous efficiency and tackle the issue of ticket racketeering head-on.
“Our valued customers are encouraged to use NRC ticket platforms online to take advantage of the increased services and avoid patronising ticket racketeers.
“Additional information can be obtained from the NRC website, www.nrc.gov.ng,” it stated.
The expanded services on the Abuja-Kaduna route, it said, followed similar enhancements on the Lagos-Ibadan route, which now includes additional trips on Fridays and Saturdays to accommodate increasing demand.
Railway
Nigerian railway adds extra train to Friday, Saturday trips on Lagos-Ibadan route
Nigerian railway adds extra train to Friday, Saturday trips on Lagos-Ibadan route
The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has announced the introduction of additional train trips on its Lagos-Ibadan Train Service (LITS) route, exclusively for Fridays and Saturdays.
This initiative increases weekend trips from two to three, offering commuters greater travel flexibility.
The announcement, made via the NRC’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle on Tuesday, revealed that the new Lagos-to-Ibadan trip will depart at 1:40 pm, complementing the existing schedules of 7:45 am and 4:00 pm.
For the Ibadan-to-Lagos route, the additional trip is set for 10:50 am, joining the regular departures at 8:00 am and 4:30 pm.
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“Catch our extra Friday & Saturday train trips on LAGOS – IBADAN TRAIN SERVICE (LITS).
“LAGOS to IBADAN:
“•Times: 7:45am, 1:40pm, 4:00pm
“IBADAN to LAGOS:
“•Times: 8:00am, 10:50am, 4:30pm,” NRC’s tweet read in part.
This tweet by the Nigerian Railway Corporation further noted that the new schedule complements the existing Sunday-to-Thursday trips, which remain unchanged with departure times at 8:00 am and 4:00 pm from both Lagos and Ibadan.
This move by the NRC to expand the schedule is aimed at accommodating increased demand, particularly during weekends, and providing greater flexibility for commuters traveling between Lagos and Ibadan.
The move is expected to ease travel pressures and improve convenience for passengers on one of Nigeria’s busiest rail routes.
Travelers are encouraged to take advantage of the additional services and book tickets early via the e-ticketing website. to secure their spots, especially as the Lagos-Ibadan rail route continues to grow in popularity.
Nigerian railway adds extra train to Friday, Saturday trips on Lagos-Ibadan route
Railway
Nigeria gets $350m AfDB facility for Kano-Maradi rail project
Nigeria gets $350m AfDB facility for Kano-Maradi rail project
The Federal Government of Nigeria has secured $350 million from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to fund the construction of the Kano-Maradi rail project, which will connect Kano to Maradi in Niger Republic.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Land Transport, Senator Adamu Aliero, made this disclosure on Monday during an oversight visit to the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) headquarters in Lagos, as reported by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
Aliero stated that the Kano-Maradi rail project is part of the government’s broader efforts to modernize Nigeria’s railway network and enhance regional trade links.
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“The Chairman, Senate Committee on Land Transport, Sen. Adamu Aliero, says the African Development Bank has released $350 million to the Federal Government for construction of a rail line from Kano to Maradi,” the NAN report read in part.
He also highlighted that President Bola Tinubu’s recent visit to China focused on finalizing negotiations for 85% of the financing needed to upgrade and rehabilitate the nation’s rail infrastructure.
Aliero disclosed that the supplementary budget recently passed by the National Assembly allocated over N530 billion as counterpart funding for these modernization efforts. The remaining 85% of the funds will be sourced from institutions such as China Exim Bank, the International Finance Corporation, and AfDB.
Nigeria gets $350m AfDB facility for Kano-Maradi rail project
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