Three-hour speed train from Abuja to Lagos to commence operation in 2018 – FG

The Federal Government on Wednesday disclosed that a three-hour speed train from Lagos to Abuja will commence operation by 2018.

The Minister of Transportation, Senator Idris Umar, made this known at the at the public presentation of a book: “Showcasing Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s Monumental Strides: A Third Party Perspective,” written by the Director-General of  Citizens Network For Peace and Development in Nigeria, Dressmann Preye.

Umar said government had started receiving expression of interests from private firms within and outside the country for partnership with it on the operation of the speed train project.

Umar said the speed trains would cover the journey in a maximum period of three hours.

He also revealed that the Abuja-Kaduna rail project would start full operation by March.

Umar explained that the Federal Government had carried out a number of feasibility studies with the aim of constructing more standard gauge lines across the country and had successfully completed studies in seven new corridors, including the Abuja-Lagos high speed train.

He said: “The consultants who carried out the feasibility studies have submitted their reports.

“Part of the report contains the involvement of the private sector to drive the project.

“This is because we want to develop these lines under public, private partnership arrangements.

“We have already received a lot of expression of interests even ahead of advertisement for the purpose from various companies in the country and indeed in other countries of the world.

“The idea is that if we have this in place, the trains can move from Abuja to Lagos and from Lagos to Abuja in a maximum of three hours.

“We are intending to compete favourably with the other transportation systems in carrying passengers from Abuja to Lagos.

“When fully actualised, a train will leave Abuja to Lagos and Lagos to Abuja every hour.

“The feasibility studies had been completed.

“It is not a question of story.

“The trains will start running within the next three years, say by 2018.”

The minister explained that the Federal Government had completed the rehabilitation of the Western rail lines under its revivalist strategy in the rail transport sector.

He said: “At the moment, the trains are moving from Port Harcourt all the way to Gombe, a distance of over 1,000 kilometres, but as soon as the security situation improves around Borno State, we will complete the line from Gombe to Maiduguri.

“While that is going on, we have constructed the standard gauge from Abuja to Kaduna.

“We have completed the laying of the track and very soon President Goodluck Jonathan will inaugurate it and by March this year, we are going to commence full operation on that line.”