By Audrey Lotechukwu
TUES 07 SEPT, 2021-theGBJournal- Data provided by the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) and verified and validated by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), shows that for Q2 2021, a total of 565,385 passengers travelled via the rail system in Q2 2021 as against 108,238 passenger recorded in Q2 2020 and 424,460 in Q1 2021 representing +422.35% growth YoY and +33.20% QoQ respectively.
Similarly, a total of 42,782 tons of volume of goods/cargo travelled via the rail system in Q2 2021 as against 8,691 recorded in Q2 2020 and 10,511 in Q1 2021 representing +392.25% growth YoY and 307.02B % QoQ respectively.
Revenue generated from passengers in Q2 2021 was put at N1,083,851,021 as against N892,467,526 in Q1 2021.
Similarly, revenue generated from goods/cargo in Q2 2021 was put at N71,555,762 as against N26,195,160 in Q1 2021.
The country’s rail transportation system has witnessed rejuvenation is recent years with construction of new standard gauge tracks and new networks.
In September 2020, after more than three decades delay, President Muhammadu Buhari the 326 KM Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri rail line for commercial operation as well as the ancillary facilities yard, at the Goodluck Jonathan Railway Complex in Agbor (Owa-Oyibu), Delta State.
During the inauguration, President Buhari said projections indicate that the commencement of operation of the Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri Rail line will account for close to one million passengers annually and also unleash approximately 3.5 million tonnes capacity of freight annually that will service all off-takers on the corridor and beyond.
Similarly, the ground breaking ceremony of the Kano- Maradi Rail line in Katsina State was inaugurated onTuesday, February, 2021.
The 1,424 km Lagos – Kano (Western corridor), the Port-Harcourt-Enugu-Markurdi-Maiduguri with branches to Owerri (Imo State), Damaturu (Yobe State), to link deep sea ports in Bonny Island and a Railway Industrial Patk in Port-Harcourt (Eastern corridor) was also initiated.
Other initiated rail projects include the Eastern Costal Rail line from Lagos to Calabar, with links to Onitsha, Benin, Warri , Yenegoa, Port- Harcourt, Aba and Uyo. While the Central Railway will transverse Itakpe-Baro-Abuja with connection to Lokoja to link the new seaport in Warri.
These projects are viewed as viable, that will not only boost economic activities but will significantly enhance the movement of passengers and freight to hinterland especially of raw materials from agricultural and mineral resources needed for industries.
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