The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has said it will test run the Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge line early February.
The NRC Managing Director, Fidet Okhiria, who disclosed this on Wednesday at Ijoko,ย ย Ogun State while inspecting the project, added that work on the tracks is moving towards Lagos with 1.5 km being laid daily.
โThey have done a lot in laying of tracks between Abeokuta, Itori, Papalanto, Kajola, Ijoko towards Lagos corridor.
โWithin seven days the track laying will reach Iju towards Agege corridor of Lagos State.
โFrom here to Iju is 10 kilometres, and we are laying 1.5 kilometres on daily basis and by the first week of February, we will do a test run to Abeokuta from Lagos.
โAll the formations have been put in place to expedite the tracks laying,โ he said.
The Managing Director said work had been completed between Kajola and Abeokuta.
Jerry Oche, the NRC Lagos District Manager, said that when completed, the trains would be travelling at 150 kilometres per hour.
โWith the new standard gauge, you can reside in Ibadan and be working in Lagos which is a very good development to people and for our economy,โ he said.
The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, had said in 2018 that the completion of Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge would also ease off the Apapa gridlock.
Amaechi said: โAs you can see, the narrow gauge is existing but it’s not efficient, but the moment we fix this project, then those goods will be transferred to the rail and the lock jam will disappear on the road.โ
