Nigerians have asked the Federal Government to review fares for the Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge rail line.
The rail service begins operations today.
Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi had announced, on Friday, that tickets for the route would be N3,000 for Economy Class, N5,000 for Business Class and N6,000 for First Class.
The social media, especially Twitter, has been on fire since the announcement with Nigerians blasting the Federal Government for what many called the “inordinately high fares”.
Amaechi had said the Federal Government would apply the same template like the one used on the Abuja to Kaduna route, which has been in operation since June 2017, to justify the fares.
But Nigerians urged the Federal Government to reconsider the price, saying the Abuja-Kaduna route is longer than the Lagos-Ibadan, and that the former is used mostly by politicians and captains of industries.
They argued that Lagos to Ibadan rail line is going to be used, mostly by the masses, majority of whom cannot afford the fares.
According to them, the fare for the Lagos-Ibadan, and vice versa, by road, is N1,000, which is far cheaper than the Economy Class fare of the rail line.
A twitter user with the handle @Dekunle said the train is better if it offers more than the common rail service to enable the government get ggod patronage.
http://twitter.com/especially_lv/status/1334933422301720577?s=20
http://twitter.com/DrOlufunmilayo/status/1334970999398227969?s=20
Nigerian Govt: When the trains are completed, you can work in Lagos and live in Ibadan.
Same NG: N3,000 – Economy. N5,000 – Business. N6,000 -First class.*
*Fees excludes fare from the train station to your workplace and back.
— nb (金継ぎ)
(@4EyedLiwa_) December 5, 2020
Lagos-Ibadan train tickets will cost N3,000 to N6,000 —FG.
I thought train will be cheaper, because from Berger in Lagos to Ibadan is between N1000 to N1500.
— Uncle AJ (@UNCLE_AJALA) December 4, 2020
N3,000?
Them go pick me from Alagbole?
Na take off location go be the issue, but it will be better to die on that useless Lagos/Ibadan road. https://t.co/ZNFwDpnvMO
— Adepoju Tobi Samuel
(@OgaNlaMedia) December 4, 2020
Ikechukwu, with the twitter handle @iykimo, asked a rhetorical question: “Isn’t rail transport the cheapest anymore? Lagos to Ibadan is N3k, N6k for executive suite.”
Yet, another Twitter user, AkureCityHunter, with the handle @AkureCityHunter, said: “I will pay N3k from Lagos to Ibadan and I’d still be in the economy? Well, that economy better have a PS5, free Netflix and some KFC delicacies.”
