Despite the Federal Government’s 50% fare discount, travelers have expressed disappointment that the promised respite has yet to materialize, and transportation expenses remain high.
The PUNCH reported that President Bola Tinubu announced the discount, which will be in effect from December 21 to January 4, 2024, in order to ease Nigerians’ suffering.
The government collaborated with significant transport businesses to implement the mandate, including God is Good Motors, Chisco Transport, The Young Shall Grow Motors, God Bless Ezenwata, and Area Motor.
While some Nigerians see this as a much-needed initiative to reduce transport costs, others see it as an unworkable program that has failed to lessen the burden of high transport prices.
Some passengers who talked to The PUNCH said that despite the 50% discount, transport providers continued to raise their pricing.
“The government’s announcement seemed promising,” observed a passenger en route to Aba, “but the actual reduction isn’t reflected in our expenses. We expected a relief, especially because it was the holiday season.
“My brother, who left using Chisco yesterday, paid N27,000 to Aba. Some of these businesses did not give up to a 50% discount. Yes, the President cut it, but it appears that these companies also took advantage of it.
“Previously, Chisco did not charge N54,000 as a transit fare to Aba. If you charge N27,000 now that the Federal Government is offering a 50% discount, it shows they are purposely increasing.
He continued, “No matter how you look at it, travelers are still paying over N25,000 on average on transport.”
A university student, Nnamdi Chintuwa, who was heading to Owerri, said at The Young Shall Grow Park that transport companies were charging customers without cause.
“Even with the Federal Government’s reduction, passengers are still paying more than N23,000. Are you suggesting that these companies would have cost more than N45,000 to travel from Lagos to the south-east? I doubt Nigerians would be willing to pay such a sum.
“There are always excuses to give that are the truth, but the fact remains that these transporters are not just fair to themselves,” Chintuwa said with a sigh.
Another ABC transit Company customer, Emmanuel Edeh, said that before the 50% discount, the transit fare to Abuja from Lagos was N30,000, but now it was N42,700.
“It means you’re still paying more than N21,000. It remains high for many people,” Edeh explained.
God is Good Motors, one of the companies working with the Federal Government on the project, charges N36,000 for the Lagos to Owerri route as of Tuesday morning.
