By Adedapo Adesanya
The Lagos State Government has announced that the first phase of the Blue Rail Line will commence operations on Monday, September 4.
The Managing Director of the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), Mrs Abimbola Akinajo, made this known at the Marina Train Station on Wednesday.
Mrs Akinajo also noted that the first train ride would kick off by 9 am with Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on board, along with other passengers, from Marina to Mile 2 Train Station.
Mrs Akinajo explained that for the first four weeks, the rain will run only 12 trips with the locomotive system, and after one month, LAMATA will commence electric-powered train operation with 76 trips.
The Lagos State government is working with estimated passengers between 150,000 and 175,000 from 5.30 am to 11 pm on a daily basis.
It was also disclosed that the train will only stop for 90 seconds at each station.
According to her, the transport palliative announced by Governor Sanwo-Olu will also reflect on train transportation.
The LAMATA MD appeals to residents of Lagos not to cross the rail tracks because it is energised.
She warned that anyone found carrying out illegal activities across the five train stations would be prosecuted.
The Lagos State Government had planned the construction of the line to check traffic and ease movement across the state, which has over 20 million residents, but over the years, it made no progress.
Nigeria’s current President and former Governor of Lagos State, Mr Bola Tinubu, resuscitated the idea in the early 2000s, with a formal announcement of its construction in December 2003, after an earlier attempt by the Lateef Jakande administration failed.
In 2008, the state, through the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), made progress with the rail project, focusing initially on the Blue and the Red lines.
The entire Lagos State rail project is designed to run through various areas under a seven-line network codenamed Red, Blue, Green, Yellow, Purple, Brown, and Orange lines.
The Blue Line, which the state has exerted more energy on, is a 27 km-long rail project connecting Okokomaiko to Marina. It is split into two phases. The first phase is from Marina to Mile 2, while the second phase is from Mile 2 to Okokomaiko, with the initial estimated completion date of 2011 for the first phase. This was, however, shifted midway to 2013 by Mr Tinubu’s successor, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola.
However, the project suffered many delays, with the state government and LAMATA sometimes giving contradictory reasons for the delay in meeting the numerous deadlines.
