• Tasks contractor to hand over December 2018

By Moshood Adebayo

Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, yesterday, flagged-off construction of Segment II multi-billion naira Lagos-Ibadan rail line, charging the contractor to hand over by December 2018.

The project, which is being handled by the China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC), spans 156.65 kilometres and is  expected to cost N458 billion.

The agreement between Nigeria and the CRCC, for the construction of the Lagos-Ibadan and Calabar-Port Harcourt rail lines, was signed by the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, last year.

Osinbajo arrived the  Ebute-Metta headquarters of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) at about 12.20pm.

At the ground-breaking ceremony, Osinbajo said by virtue of the project, Nigerians would  soon join other comity of nations to enjoy benefits associated with modern, efficient railway system.

He added that the rail line project signifies the determination of President Muhammadu Buhari to modernise the national railway system and in keeping to his promise to the country.

His words: “The president, in his January 2016 visit to China, re-opened negotiations on the Chinese support for this project.

“ This ceremony also mark the commencement of our plan to move speedily to improve link with Lagos which is the national economic nerve centre and major port to other state capital across the country.

“Our ground-breaking today reflects plans of the Federal Government to build a globally competitive economy, the critical roles of infrastructure and for this purpose, railway, in this strategy, underscores our economic recovery and growth plan as well as 2016 and 2017 budget.

“We made provision for matching funds in the 2016 budget, to complement concession loans obtained from the Peoples Republic of China.

“Our appreciation goes to the Chinese government and the Chinese Exchange Bank which have always proved to be a reliable partner to the Nigeria government. We have the entire Lagos-Kano rail track as well as the Lagos-Calabar railway track in the 2017 budget.”

While disclosing that negotiations on the Kaduna-Kano portion of the track is being completed, he said: “We have already provided our counterpart funding for the Lagos-Calabar route as well and we expect that negotiations with the foreign component of the funding will be finalised within the next three months.

“An active and vibrant railway system will benefit the society. Our ultimate goal is to ensure railway is used  for both commercial and personal transportation.

“We are confident that the national rail project will create about half a million jobs and facilitate the movement of up to 3.2 tonnes of cargo per annum.

“It will also reduce the burden on national highways thus reducing deterioration of the road networks and increasing the life span of our roads. Railway network will support efforts to diversify the economy and enhance our export potential. Just as several of our cities became known as railway towns in the past, we expect to boost economic activities within the railway lines that will eventually cut across the entire country.”

 To achieve this objective, he said the Transportation ministry has also completed feasibility study for up to 13 routes identify for connecting state capital and major commercial centres to the rail network, assuring Nigerians will begin to see significant activities in the sector shortly.

“It is important, however, to have a viable self-sustaining and vibrant rail system. This is why the federal government supports the replacement of the 1964 railway acts with a legal frame work that will open railway projects in the country to greater private sector participation.

“In this way, we expect to ensure that the resources to manage efficient modern and reliable train services. I am confident that we will see the same zeal in project construction so that the railway lines will be completed on schedule. We are looking forward to a fast and efficient service between Lagos and Ibadan within the projected time frame which is on or before December 2018.”

On his part, Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, said the project marks a new dawn in the transformation of  the state transport infrastructure.

“We are excited about this project because it would further open up the economy of the South-West region and facilitate regional integration and growth.

“The agricultural sector will receive the long awaited boost as the rail line will be a fast and convenient means of transporting farm produce from the hinterland to the city thereby increasing the economies of these places. In addition, our proposed Red Line Project will breathe a new lease of life into our roads and highways. 

“A direct benefit of this project is that containers and goods from the Apapa Port will now be transported by rail thereby reducing the number of trailers and other heavy duty vehicles on our roads.

“A direct consequence of this project would be less productive man hours wasted on the roads due to traffic gridlock and bad roads due to heavy duty vehicles. In addition, we expect government to expend less resources on road repair and maintenance once the rail line takes off and reduce the pressure of articulated vehicles on our roads,” said Ambode.

The governor thanked the federal government for prioritising the project which, he said, would complement the state government’s efforts in delivering a transport system befitting a modern city.