Bisola David
Over 400,000 passengers had travelled on the Blue Rail Line as of November 29, according to the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority.
According to The Punch, LAMATA’s managing director, Abimbola Akinajo, recently highlighted the system’s effectiveness at a press conference celebrating LAMATA’s 20th anniversary.
Akinajo emphasized that the switch to the electric mode was smooth and that 52 daily trips were maintained without any interruptions. Plans to raise the number of daily trips to 76 were already being considered.
The CEO of LAMATA claims that since the Blue Line’s commercial launch on September 4, it has become a success story, despite early difficulties with the Marina to Mile 2 phase.
“Over the course of these 20 years, we have created the Lagos Strategic Transport Master Plan, built the 13km and 34km Oshodi Abule Egba and Ikorodu CMS BRT Corridor respectively.”
“In these 20 years, we have built and operationalized the 13-kilometer Oshodi Abule Egba and 34-kilometer Ikorodu CMS BRT Corridor, respectively, and developed the Lagos Strategic Transport Master Plan.”
She also emphasized LAMATA’s contribution to the Lagos State Government’s 2019 approval of the Lagos Non-Motorised Transport policy.
The head of LAMATA declared that work on the second phase, which will run from Mile 2 to Okoko, has begun. The project is scheduled to be finished in 2027.
According to Akinajo, the construction is proceeding according to plan, with test runs planned for the first quarter of 2024 and completion anticipated by year’s end.
The LAMATA boss stated that because of the accumulated experience, the test-run duration is expected to be substantially shorter than the Blue Line.
According to her, the Red Line’s commercial operations are expected to start before the end of 2024’s second quarter.
Akinajo also emphasised LAMATA’s and the state government’s dedication to implementing electric buses for commercial use, despite obstacles in growing the fleet.
