Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of Transportation has announced that the Lagos-Ibadan gauge train would reach full completion and would be ready for formal inauguration next month.
He stated that he had discussed with President Muhammadu Buhari the need for the completion of the project up to the Apapa terminal extension before the inauguration.
The minister disclosed that there would be no slash in the prices of tickets for the train services.
Currently, with the skeletal service in operation, the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) charges Lagos-Ibadan passengers N2,500 for economy, N5,000 for business class, and N6,000 for first-class seats.
He also said that all the 10 of the stations will be inaugurated at the same time next month.
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Amaechi said his next visit to the President’s office would be to give them a date which must be January. He expressed the necessity of finding a solution to the gridlock. ‘The moment we begin to move wagons from the seaports at least to Ibadan, pressure on Lagos will reduce drastically and that is my objective,’ he stated.
‘They must increase the pace of work for us to inaugurate next month. We will not inaugurate Ebute-Metta to Ibadan. We will inaugurate the entire stations’, he added.
Amaechi stated that there are two contracts. The first is Ebute-Metta to Ibadan while the second is Ebute-Metta to Apapa Sea Port. To decongest the Apapa Sea Port to minimize the gridlock, the Minister stated that cargoes would need to be put on the train and then transported to Ibadan inland cargo port .
Peace Omenka