Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway

Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway
Overview
Status

Abuja–Kaduna operational
Lagos–Ibadan under construction

Other segments in planning
Operation
Opened 26 July 2016 (2016-07-26) (Abuja-Kaduna)
Technical
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Operating speed 100 km/h (62 mph)
Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway
 Abuja - Idu
 Kubwa
 Jere
 Rijana
 Kaduna - Rigasa

The Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway is a planned standard gauge railway across Nigeria, from the Atlantic Ocean port of Lagos to Kano, near the Niger border. The railway will run parallel to the British-built Cape gauge line, which has a lower design capacity and is in a deteriorated condition.[1]

The railway is being built in segments. Only the segment between Abuja and Kaduna has been completed so far, and services began officially in July 2016. The segment between Lagos and Ibadan is under construction.

History

After Nigeria became independent from Great Britain, the colonial-era railways progressively fell into a state of disrepair. Passenger traffic on the Nigerian railways fell from 11 million in 1964 to 1.6 million in 2003. Freight traffic almost collapsed, falling from 3 million tonnes in 1964 to less than 100,000 tonnes in 2000.[2] In early 2013, it took 31 hours for passenger trains to travel between Lagos and Kano, at an average speed of just 45 km/h.[3]

Although projects have begun to rehabilitate the Cape gauge railways, economic growth in Nigeria has made a standard gauge line desirable.[1] In 2006, the Nigerian government awarded a $8.3 billion contract to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation to construct a standard gauge railway from Lagos to Kano. Due to an inability to secure funding for the whole project, the Nigerian government decided to build the standard gauge line in segments and rehabilitate the narrow-gauge line in the meantime.[4]

Abuja–Kaduna

The 187 km segment from Abuja to Kaduna was the first to be built. Abuja was not on the national railway network, as the city was built after Nigeria became independent from Great Britain.[5] Kaduna is an important junction point on the existing Cape gauge railway network, where a branch line departs the Lagos–Nguru line for Kafanchan, on the Port Harcourt–Maiduguri Railway.

The construction of the Abuja–Kaduna segment cost $876 million, consisting of $500 million in loans from the Exim Bank of China and the balance coming from the Nigerian government.[5] The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) originally expected to complete the project in December 2014.[6]

However, various difficulties delayed the opening of the route. Railway supplies were being stolen by miscreants, forcing CCECC to build a corridor fence to secure the tracks.[6] The decline in the value of the Nigerian naira led to a shortfall in government funding for the project.[5][6] Delays arose in the acquisition of land required for the railway through compulsory purchase. Although CCECC had marked the Daughters of Charity hospital in Abuja for demolition in 2014, the government did not pay compensation to the hospital until April 2016.[7]

Construction began on 20 February 2011.[8] Tracklaying began in 2013, and the railway began trial operations in June 2016. The railway was officially inaugurated on 26 July 2016.[5]

Lagos–Ibadan

A $1.53 billion contract was awarded in 2012 to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation for construction of the Lagos–Ibadan segment (156 km) of the standard gauge railway by 2016.[4] However, the project has also faced delays. A ground-breaking ceremony finally took place on 7 March 2017, and the railway is expected to be completed by December 2018.[9]

Other segments

Other segments have not yet begun construction:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Israel, Olumide (March 2, 2014). "Railway: The return of the economic live wire!". Vanguard.
  2. ↑ Komolafe, Oladayo (2015-02-17). "Overseeing the resurrection of Nigerian railways". News Agency of Nigeria.
  3. ↑ "A slow but steady new chug". The Economist. 9 February 2013.
  4. 1 2 "Abuja-Kaduna Rail Line, Nigeria". Railway Technology. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "President inaugurates Abuja – Kaduna railway". 2016-07-26.
  6. 1 2 3 Odittah, Chuka (2016-01-27). "Hope dims on N170 billion Abuja-Kaduna rail project". The Guardian (Nigeria).
  7. ↑ "‘Compensation over Abuja-Kaduna railway ready’ | Daily Nigeria News". Daily Nigeria News. 2016-04-08. Archived from the original on 2016-04-08.
  8. ↑ "Abuja-Kaduna Rail line, Prospects and Challenges". Vanguard News. 25 July 2016. Archived from the original on 26 July 2016.
  9. ↑ "Nigeria: Lagos-Ibadan Rail Project Ready in 2018 - Osinbajo". Premium Times (Abuja). 7 March 2017.
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