The Lagos-Ibadan Railway line has commenced commercial operations on Monday, December 7, 2020.
It could be recalled that on March 7, 2017, Vice President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo performed the groundbreaking ceremony on the standard gauge Lagos-Ibadan Rail line, on behalf of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Today, December 7, the Line commenced commercial operations, ahead of its formal commissioning in Q1 of 2021.
According to the Special Assistant to President Buhari on Digital and New Media, Communications and Public Policy, Mr. Tolu Ogunlesi, the launch train for the Lagos-Ibadan Rail commercial operations left Ibadan at 0800hrs this morning.
It arrived Abeokuta 0858hrs and departed Abeokuta 0903 and later arrived Ebute Metta, Lagos, at 1040hrs.
Mr. Ogunlesi, citing the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) authorities, said that only one return trip will be carried out per day.
The train will leave Ibadan at 8am for Lagos and will be leaving Lagos for Ibadan at 4pm.
Speed and capacity, he said, will increase with time, keeping in mind that there is still some construction work ongoing, including stations building et al.
He also noted that the train will likely not hit maximum speeds until the line fencing is completed “because of some Lagosians’ love for rail line merchandising.
For now it will be doing thirty to forty kilometer per hour in Lagos metropolis, he added.