The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), has said that the Abuja-Kaduna passenger train service would resume on Monday 5th December, 2022.
Brandpowerng can confirm that the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) has resumed operation on the Abuja-Kaduna train service today with the first train departing at 8.00am.
Reports have it that the Federal Government may have lost a whopping N6.6 billion to the 251 days shutdown following the March 28 terrorist attack on the train in Rigasa, Kaduna State.
According to The Guardian, conservative estimates of loss is coming a day after the Managing Director of NRC, Fidet Okhiria, said government lost about N113 million to inactivity on the route for over eight months.
While noting that many Nigerians also incurred losses indirectly due to the halt of operations on the route, Okhiria said: “The last time we checked that was between the months of February to August. We have lost about N113 million, using what we were earning between January and March as a working document.
“Although, when the trains were working, there were a lot of other businesses that were going on.
There were people selling on the train; there were people selling around the stations. So, those were indirect benefits and cost that have been lost to the economy. So, we should not only look at the naira and kobo that the railway would have made, but include all other losses by Nigerians.”
The Guardian breakdown of the amount lost to the suspension showed that NRC lost approximately N6.6 billion revenue that could have been raked from ticket sales.
Checks revealed that coaches plying the Abuja-Kaduna rail line have the capacity to carry between 900 and 1,000 passengers per trip. An average economy ticket before the suspension sold between N2,800 and N3,000, while VIP tickets sold for N6,000.
NRC makes a minimum of N2.7 million per trip at N3,000 a ticket and when added to the 124 VIP passengers at N6,000 per ticket, the sum total per trip is about N3.3 million.
The Abuja-Kaduna Train Service (AKTS) operates eight trips daily, which gives about N26.2 million daily. When multiplied by 251 days, it gives about N6.6 billion.
The Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS) also corroborated this finding when it revealed that NRC recorded about 72 per cent loss of revenue in the second quarter of 2022 as their revenue dropped by N1.48 billion in the second quarter (Q2) of 2022.
The data, published on its verified website, said while 953,099 passengers used the railway in the first quarter of 2022, the number of railway passengers recorded in the second quarter was 422,393.
NRC management had often claimed that the losses incurred by the cooperation from the suspension of AKTS was minimal. When it tried to resume operation in May, it was later suspended after families of victims kidnapped on the ill-fated train threatened to disrupt operation until all their loved ones were rescued.
Below is a schedule of the resumed NRC service:
ABUJA-KADUNA (DEPARTURE/ ARRIVAL)
- Idu station (Abuja)- Rigassa station (Kaduna) 9.45 HRS (Departure)-11.53 HRS.
- Kubwa station (Abuja)- Rigassa station (Kaduna)10.6(Dep)-11.53HRS(Arrival).
- Idu station(Abuja) Rigassa station(Kaduna)15:30 HRS(Dep)-17:38HRS(Arrival).
- Kubwa station(Abuja)-Rigassa station (Kaduna)-15:50HRS(Dep)-17:38HRS(Arrival)
KADUNA-ABUJA (DEPARTURE/ARRIVAL)
- Rigassa station (Kaduna)-Kubwa station (Abuja)-8.00HRS (Dep)-9.57HRS (Arrival)
- Rigassa station (Kaduna)-Idu station (Abuja) 8:00 HRS (Dep) 10:17 HRS (Arrival)
- Rigassa station (Kaduna)-Kubwa station (Abuja)-14:00HRS (Dep) 15:47HRS (Arrival).
- Rigassa station (Kaduna)-Idu station (Abuja)-14:00HRS (Dep)-16:07HRS(Arrival).
According to the statement, the commuting public are hereby advised that, as part of the new security measures on the Abuja-Kaduna service, it is now mandatory to present the following documents before being allowed to board the train.
- National Identification number (NIN) for every adult boarding the train.
- Valid boarding ticket. No access will be allowed into the departure or arrival hall without a valid ticket.
- Purchase of tickets by proxy is only limited to minors and a specified number of adult passengers. All individual adult travelers must submit their NIN before the ticket can be issued.
The statement further stated that, “online and mobile app ticket purchase will be available from 8.00am on Sunday 4th December, 2022. Ticket offices at the stations will be open from 06:30am on Monday 5th December, 2022.
The management of Nigerian Railway Corporation pleaded the cooperation of esteemed passengers in ensuring the service remains safe and secure, enjoying that any inconvenience to the traveling public is regretted.
