Business Post Contributor
By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
The average bus fare paid by commuters for journeys within cities across states of the federation increased by 50 per cent year-on-year to N430.58 per drop constant route in August 2021 from N286.99 in the same time of last year.
According to the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the cost of bus transportation also increased by 5 per cent month-on-month from N410.2 in July 2021.
A look at the price watch for individual states showed that residents of Zamfara and Bauchi States paid the highest average fare for bus Journey within cities during the review period at N670.3 and N635.1 per drop constant route respectively.
This was followed by Taraba State where commuters paid approximately N550.1 on average for bus transportation within cities in the state.
In contrast, Oyo State recorded the lowest average price during the reference period as people paid N220.5 to move by bus from one city to another within the inland state of southwestern Nigeria.
Behind this were Abia and Borno States where the average cost of the bus transport service stood at N239.4 and N297.2 respectively.
Similarly, the average fare paid by commuters for bus journeys from one city to another (intercity) also went up by 1.8 per cent month-on-month to N2,588.7 in August 2021 from N2,542.95.
According to the data, the state with the highest bus journey fare intercity within the period was the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja where people paid N4,700.1 to travel to another city.
This was followed by Lagos and Sokoto where it recorded an average price as high as N3,600.0 and N3,450.2 respectively, while the lowest average cost was recorded in Bayelsa (N1,859.36), Bauchi (N1,900.60), and Akwa Ibom (N1,950.20) accordingly.
Air Transportation
According to the stats office, the average price paid by air passengers went up by a marginal 0.1 per cent month-on-month within the period to N36,805.41 for specified routes single journey in August from N36,793.24.
This also showed a 0.53 per cent year-on-year increase from N36,611.2 published for the same time last year.
The report showed that Rivers and Edo States recorded the highest average cost of air travel at N38,900 and N38,500 respectively, which was followed by the country’s largest economic hub, Lagos where it cost N38,200.
However, the lowest airfare was recorded in Akwa-Ibom at N33,100, Sokoto at N33,700, as well as and Gombe at N35,200 according to the order of listing.
Motorcycle Transportation
Observing the price watch for motorcycle transportation in the country, it the average fare paid by commuters per drop increased by 3.2 per cent month-on-month to N303.25 in August 2021 from N294.02.
On a year-on-year basis, it also went up by 54.2 per cent from N196.7 it cost last year.
In addition, commuters in Yobe who opted for motorcycle transportation within the period paid the highest average at N500.5 per drop. Behind this were Lagos and Taraba state where it cost N487.2 and N465.1 respectively.
However, it was paid for at the lowest in states like Adamawa at N107.1, Niger at N180.1, as well as, Katsina at N180.3 per drop.
Waterway Transportation
The average fare paid by people who travelled by water within the period under review similarly increased by 1.9 per cent month-on-month to N848.2 in August 2021 from N831.97, marking a 23.6 per cent year-on-year increase from N686.7.
The fare for waterway transport recorded the highest average in the southern part of the country, particularly in the oil-producing state, Delta at N2,550.5, followed by Bayelsa at N2,500.47, and Rivers at N2,300.1.
On the other hand, passengers paid the lowest waterway transport fare within the period in states such as Borno (N270.64), Kebbi (N360.11), and Taraba (N380.20).
