Site visitors gridlock is among the main challenges that has been plaguing Lagos metropolis for many years. With the inauguration of the Blue and Pink Rail Strains, the Lagos State Authorities has taken a major step in direction of revolutionising the town’s transport system. JUSTICE Okamga writes
Lagos State, with a inhabitants of over 21 million, was ranked as the town with the worst visitors congestion in 2023 by the International Site visitors Congestion Rankings.
The International Site visitors Congestion Rankings, that are carried out by the Site visitors Index, analyse visitors congestion throughout cities with no less than 500,000 inhabitants all over the world.
A research by the Danne Institute for Analysis titled ‘Behavioural Causes of Site visitors Congestion in Lagos’ revealed that the business hub loses N4tn yearly to visitors congestion.
Lagos residents spend a mean of two.21 hours commuting day by day, with 45 per cent enduring greater than two hours.
The Lagos State Authorities has taken totally different steps to deal with the town’s incessant visitors jams. Certainly one of such efforts was the introduction of the Lagos State Site visitors Administration Authority.
LASMA was established on July 15, 2000, by President Bola Tinubu throughout his tenure because the governor of Lagos State. The purpose was to remodel the state’s transportation system, guarantee free visitors movement, and scale back street accidents.
Regardless of this, the town continued to grapple with visitors gridlock, leading to important lack of man-hours
“I left Lagos final yr for Port Harcourt; I couldn’t address the stress of transferring from Ikotun to Ikoyi. I might not likely get a job nearer to my residence till I obtained a suggestion to work in Port Harcourt. I took the provide instantly,” Mary Okojie advised The Punch in a phone chat.
After twenty years of envisioning a revamped transport system, Lagos, Africa’s business hub, took a major step when, on September 4, 2023, the primary section of the Lagos Mass Transit Blue Line Rail Challenge was formally opened to the general public by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, following its inauguration by former President Muhammadu Buhari on January 24, 2023.
On February 29, 2024, the state authorities added one other metro line, Pink Line Rail, which was inaugurated by President Bola Tinubu.
When accomplished, the 27-kilometre Blue Line rail is anticipated to maneuver round 500,000 passengers day by day; the primary section will transfer about 200,000 passengers from Marina to Mile 2.
It shares the right-of-way with the Lagos-Kano Normal Gauge Railway and utilises a diesel-powered system known as Diesel A number of Models.
The primary section of the Pink Line spans from Agbado in Ogun State to the Oyingbo axis of Lagos State, overlaying a 37-kilometer rail line with eight stations: Agbado, Iju, Agege, Ikeja, Oshodi, Mushin, Yaba, and Oyingbo.
The mission is estimated to value $135m below the Better Lagos City Transportation Challenge. The mission will probably be managed by the Lagos Metropolitan Space Transport Authority.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu acknowledged in 2021 that the state authorities secured monetary help for the mission by means of the Central Financial institution of Nigeria’s differentiated money reserve requirement programme.
The Lagos State authorities has made important strides in implementing an built-in transportation community, providing residents three handy choices for commuting across the state: the BRT for street transport, the Rail Mass Transit Programme for rail, and state ferries for waterways.
In accordance with the Director of Lagos Metropolitan Space Transport Authority, Abimbola Akinajo, since its business launch in September, about 400,000 passengers had used the Blue Rail Line as of November 29.
Up to now, the system has moved shut to at least one million passengers since its inception.
The second section’s building of the Blue Line, extending from Mile 2 to Okoko, is underway, with an anticipated completion date of 2027.
Sanwo-Olu disclosed that the mixed value of the Blue and Pink Strains would surpass N100bn. The Blue Line, initially projected for completion by 2011, has confronted delays primarily because of funding challenges.
Just lately, the Lagos State governor was in China to finalise the acquisition of six further units of rolling inventory for each the Blue and Pink Strains. These are at present being retrofitted for intra-state journey, which can increase the variety of day by day passenger journeys.
Earlier than the inauguration of the Pink Rail Line, he emphasised on his official platform on X (former Twitter) that the LMRT Pink Line “isn’t nearly enhancing our metropolis’s mobility; it’s about reshaping our city panorama and setting a brand new tempo for growth.”
He reiterated that the mission was a vital a part of ongoing efforts to reshape the town’s mobility, open doorways to alternatives, and set a brand new tempo for growth by connecting essential factors throughout Lagos.
The Advertising Supervisor at Carloha Nigeria Restricted, Mathew Aje, advised The PUNCH that the metro strains would assist reduce the burden of the visitors skilled within the state.
He burdened the significance of efficient transportation in driving financial development.
“The Lagos Rail Line is poised to not simply shorten journey instances for residents but in addition bolster the town’s productiveness and aggressive edge.
“Allocating sources to railway infrastructure serves as a long-lasting treatment for city congestion. The implementation of the mission mirrors worldwide requirements, positioning Lagos as a metropolis embracing progressive approaches to sustainable city growth,” he said.
A enterprise proprietor, Onyeka Muojieke, famous, “The Lagos Rail Line is a optimistic step for the whole enterprise neighborhood, significantly for companies like mine that depend upon well timed deliveries. It can streamline logistics and improve general effectivity.”
Inauguration
President Tinubu was current for the signing of the contract for Section 2 of the LRMT Pink Line mission, overseen by LAMATA DG and Chairman of the contracting agency, CCECC Nigeria Restricted, Jason Zhang.
Tinubu joined Sanwo-Olu, the Chinese language Ambassador to Nigeria, Cui Jianchun, and others on an inaugural prepare experience from Ikeja Practice Station to Agege Station, accompanied by Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat.
Addressing the gathering on the Ikeja prepare station, the President urged the Minister of Transportation, Senator Sa’idu Alkali, to make sure strengthened collaboration amongst governments in any respect ranges for dependable, environment friendly, and inexpensive transportation techniques.
In response, the minister expressed the Federal Authorities’s readiness to collaborate with different state governments and the non-public sector to boost the rail transportation system for the convenience of motion of individuals, items, and financial growth.
Tinubu characterised the mission because the realisation of a dream and the end result of years of arduous work and dedication by successive governments.
”I’m very comfortable certainly that right this moment is a day to recollect in Nigeria’s infrastructural historical past, significantly Lagos, the centre of excellence. Immediately is proof that it’s good to dream, and it’s a severe validation of democracy as a type of authorities of the individuals, by the individuals, and for the individuals.
”25 years in the past, I used to be elected to steer Nigeria’s most populous state. From the very starting, my group and I toiled day and night time with a really naked cabinet amidst pervasive deficiency to implement a developmental imaginative and prescient that will remodel Lagos into an financial powerhouse. Immediately, we’re realizing that dream.
”The momentum of greatness we kicked off 1 / 4 of a century in the past has develop into unstoppable progress. It’s not unlawful to dream massive. Simply keep centered and make growth a central focus,’’ he mentioned.
In accordance with Sanwo-Olu, the state has a Strategic Transport Grasp Plan that outlines what that built-in rail system ought to appear like six rail strains, one monorail, 14 bus fast transit corridors, over 20 water routes, and an unlimited community of main and internal roads.
“Within the grand tapestry of our growth agenda, we’re advancing a sequence of visionary legacy initiatives,” he said.
Security considerations
Merchants and pedestrians crowding close to prepare tracks in Lagos pose security considerations because of their disregard for walkways and footbridges.
Addressing these challenges is essential to enhancing security and safety for each merchants and pedestrians in Lagos.
The governor acknowledged these considerations and cautioned merchants and residents to keep away from the tracks, as there could be continued enforcement to make sure the tracks remained clear.
“The problem now we have is the pedestrian interference on the rail monitor and unapproved actions seen alongside the hall. We are going to proceed with the enforcement we began in opposition to unlawful use of the rail hall. We’re in talks with the NRC to bolster the prepare route with bodily boundaries to restrict pedestrian interference.”
“As a result of as soon as the intra prepare begins, it isn’t each two hours or three hours; it’s going to be pretty common, 10 minutes, quarter-hour, and we don’t need them to really feel snug that they’ve to remain on monitor. It’s not a spot for individuals to remain.
“That’s the main problem; now we have lowered it significantly within the final two months, and we won’t cease,” Sanwo-Olu said.
The Lagos State Emergency Administration Company signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a non-public agency, First Metro Infrastructure Restricted, to fight any emergency case that will happen alongside the Pink Line rail.
The Everlasting Secretary of LASEMA, Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, assured residents of satisfactory safety for lives and property inside and outdoors the hall. He additionally cautioned in opposition to flouting any laid-down guidelines or laws concerning prepare engagement.
A joint committee was established by LASEMA, comprising members from the FMIL group. This group promptly initiated motion and carried out a threat evaluation from Agbado Station to Oyingbo Station.
At every station, a Geographic Info System could be deployed to evaluate the gap between stations and routes to emergency centres comparable to hospitals, fireplace providers, and LASEMA, the coordinating company.
“And the great factor is, if now we have an emergency, we will simply kick-start our response. And the response won’t solely be efficient; it’s going to even be environment friendly”, Oke-Osanyintolu assured.
“We now have achieved the whole lot humanly doable to make sure their security. We’ve achieved what we name threat evaluation, or useful resource mapping. When residents abide by the foundations and laws, we will guarantee them of their security, and we will guarantee them of their clear enterprise continuity.
“To make sure that the passengers on the pink line rail and metro rail routes are protected when it comes to infrastructure and phrases of their security on the trains, each on and off the prepare,” he urged.
The state has constructed 10 vehicular overpasses and pedestrian bridges, separating prepare visitors from vehicular and pedestrian flows.
This will even assist to make sure the graceful operation of the rail line and security for commuters.
Inexperienced and Purple Strains
When totally developed, there will probably be a complete of six strains on the Lagos Rail Mass Transit System. The state has began preliminary work on the subsequent two: the inexperienced and purple strains.
In December, that state mentioned it had commenced talks with non-public traders for feasibility research of the development of the inexperienced and purple rail line techniques to be accomplished in three and a half years.
The Inexperienced Line is a 71.49-kilometre route from Marina to the Lekki Free Zone, one of many fastest-growing industrial areas on the continent right this moment and the place the brand new Lagos Worldwide Airport will probably be situated.
The Purple Line is a 54.35-kilometre line from the Redemption Camp to Ojo, close to Lagos State College. The ultimate two strains would be the orange and yellow strains.
Nevertheless, contract signing to kick off the development had but to happen.
