Inside Nigeria’s Dormant Railway Networks

Despite the milestone recorded in recent years in some parts of the country, the Nigerian railway networks, which ought to have eased the movement of passengers and goods across the country, have largely remained dormant for decades, Daily Trust on Sunday reports. Over the years, different governments, especially after the return of democracy in Nigeria, […]

Despite the milestone recorded in recent years in some parts of the country, the Nigerian railway networks, which ought to have eased the movement of passengers and goods across the country, have largely remained dormant for decades, Daily Trust on Sunday reports.

Over the years, different governments, especially after the return of democracy in Nigeria, had promised to revamp the comatose railway infrastructure. However, while there has been progress in some places in that regard, the move remains a pipe dream in others, even as many Nigerians are looking forward to a rewarding railway infrastructure.

Some people who understand the happenings in the railway subsector attributed the slow pace of progress to many factors, including poor funding, withdrawal of Chinese investors from some of the commitments they made over time, red-tapism, among others.

It is believed that with an efficient railway system, the cost of doing businesses in Nigeria will go down, while the lifespan of highways that are being overstretched by articulated vehicles will be longer.

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Nigerians, particularly those in their 70s and 80s, remember with relish, the advantages of the railway system in transporting goods to various places. It was the time when groundnuts, cocoa, grains and cattle, among others, were being transported with ease and at minimal costs. The rail system was also a choice means of travelling for families because of its efficiency and security.

In those days, railway transportation was the only means of commuting between the South and North, East and West with railway tracks crisscrossing the length and breadth of the country. There are also over 200 stations spread across Nigeria.

Petroleum products, goods and perishables were moved through the railway, and the number of trucks on the highways was minimal.

It, however, became an autonomous public corporation created by an act of parliament, the Nigerian Railway Corporation Act (1955), as amended 1990, with the general objectives of “carriage of passengers and goods in the manner that will offer full value and quality of service, ensure safety of operations and maximum efficiency; meet social responsibility in a manner that will meet the requirements of rail users, trade, commerce and the general public.’’

The Nigerian railway network runs diagonally from the South West (Lagos) to North East (Nguru) and from the South South (Port Harcourt) through Kafanchan to the North East (Maiduguri).

The network consists of 4,332 track kilometres characterised by sharp curves and steep gradients in many sections.

Despite some of the gains recorded to revive the sector, especially during the immediate past administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, findings by our correspondents, however, revealed that most of the Nigerian railway’s infrastructure across the country are in a sorry state, with rail tracks vandalised and converted to farms and residential buildings.

This is as operations on some of the rail networks that are in good condition have been suspended due to high cost of diesel.

Due to what observers and experts described as decades of neglect, the railway system in Nigeria had suffered a massive decline until 2012 when the government of former President Goodluck Jonathan restored the Lagos-Kano train service, building on the plans of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The Obasanjo government, it would be recalled, did all the groundwork, commissioning a comprehensive report on the 25-year railway development master plan. However, none of the projects highlighted in the master plan was implemented during his government.

Obasanjo had contracted the China Civil Engineering and Construction Corporation (CCECC) to build the Lagos-Kano standard gauge railway, which is a 1,343-kilometer line. When completed, the line is expected to connect every part of the country with faster, more efficient and modern train services. However, the project did not take off until the Jonathan government segmented it in 2011, beginning with Abuja-Kaduna, which is a 186-kilometre line.

The project was commissioned in July 2016 by the Muhammadu Buhari administration, making it the first standard gauge to be operational in Nigeria.

Going further, the Buhari administration, on April 7, 2017, flagged off the 157-kilometer Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge project with connection to Apapa port terminals to aid evacuation of cargoes and containers. 

From Lagos-Ibadan, the project is expected to continue with Ibadan-Kano, even as the right of way had commenced before it was stalled, owing to funding challenges. 

All the projects were listed under the railway modernisation programme designed to connect all states of the federation. The projects include the Ibadan-Kano standard gauge railway ($5.3 billion); N11.17 bn Lagos-Calabar coastal railway project; the $3.02 bn rehabilitation project for the eastern line (Port Harcourt-Maiduguri) and the $1.9 bn Kano-Maradi railway project. The N11.17 bn Lagos-Calabar coastal railway project, which had been in the pipeline for almost two decades, was in 2021 approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) during the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration but there was no financial commitment to kick-start it.

According to an analysis by Daily Trust on Sunday, all the listed railway projects are estimated at $21.3bn (about N16trillion) with most of the projects at their infancy, even as the 2025 deadline for the actualisation of the various projects as stipulated in the roadmap draws nearer. 

A chronicle of the abandoned networks

Across the country, the vestiges of the railway are visible everywhere. They are reminders of the good old days when railway transportation was the prime mass transit mode. But today, many railway properties and tracks have been taken over and are overgrown by weeds. 

Benue: Otukpo/Makurdi rail taken over by farms, houses

In Benue State, the many routes covered by the railway in terms of inter-state and intra-state coverage no longer exist.

Our correspondent reports that railway stations in Otukpo and Makurdi are now in a sorry state.

The interconnectivity rails across the state have been vandalised, and in some cases, houses are built on the railway and farms and other activities take place on the once vibrant rail lines.

The once bustling hub with three active train services to Kano, Jos and Maiduguri, known as Otukpo’s Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) station, now stands as a shadow of its former glory.

While the Otukpo railway station remains forgotten and in disrepair, a stroll through the once vibrant Makurdi railway station also reveals a stark contrast – signal lamps, communication systems and essential components lie in ruins.

Locals have encroached on the abandoned rail tracks, cultivating crops and constructing residential structures, further erasing the station’s historical significance.

For Otukpo station, a retired NRC staff member lamented that it began to decline since his departure in 2003. He said that while other parts of the country witnessed the success of revived train services, the North-Central geopolitical zone, particularly Otukpo, was neglected.

Another NRC staffer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, urged the present administration to address the neglect of the once vital transportation means for common people, stressing its potential to ease transportation challenges faced by locals.

Recalling the Makurdi station’s heydays, the staff member said the last train passed through the state five years ago. He added that the station, which once thrived with commercial activities, is now dilapidated.

Similarly, Otukpo’s once thriving railway station remains a poignant symbol of neglect, waiting for the echoes of its past to return.

The station manager of the NRC in Makurdi, who simply identified himself as Yusuf, declined comment, saying anyone seeking information must first write to the corporation’s headquarters to give him the directive to speak on such matter.

But another official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the coaches were grounded and no operation whatsoever was going on as even the rail tracks had all been vandalised.

“Just take a look around the station premises from the opposite direction, the only place you see the rail tracks on ground are within the distance of the station’s buildings. Everything has been vandalised. Unless new rails are laid, there is no way operation can take place within this axis again,” he said.

Our correspondent recalled that in a paper presentation in 2021, the assistant commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Benue State, Adegbe Ibrahim, lamented the destruction of public property by vandals, and urged communities to police their environment.

Ibrahim had, in a paper entitled, “Vandalism and Wanton Destruction of Public Assets and Infrastructure,” decried the activities of vandals in the state, which he said were quite disturbing.

“In Benue, for the past two weeks, I get calls from different locations frequently because of vandalism of railway tracks and slippers. It is worrisome. Every day, they are looting railway slippers, either in Taraku or Gboko. And I wonder if those doing these things are indigenes or citizens of this country.

“The government has not told us that they (railway tracks/slippers) are not useful. The federal government is doing everything possible to ensure that railways come back to life. Why are we vandalising it? Let’s talk to the people to stop the criminal act or they will face the wrath of the law. We have arrested so many of the vandals and some have already been convicted,” he said.

A staff member of the NRC who did not want his name mentioned told one of our correspondents that traffic toward the northern region had stopped for a long period before 2018.

He, however, explained that whenever there were locomotives, rail businesses toward the North were still transacted as at 2018, stressing that the fortune of train transportation dwindled over time.

The staff member asked the government to revamp the rail transportation in the state by laying new tracks and introducing new train services.

Coaches, wagons in Kafanchan station home to reptiles, mice

As the administrative headquarters of the then North-Central District of the corporation, the Kafanchan railway station had three sub-districts: Jos (Plateau State), Lafia (Nasarawa State) and Makurdi (Benue State).

The districts covered many routes – from Kankomi in Kaduna to Kafanchan, to Heipang in Plateau State; from Kafanchan to Igumale in Benue after Otukpo and Makurdi stations, stretching to 571 kilometres.

With trains running from the far North to the East through Kafanchan, the North-Central District generated about 30 per cent of the railway’s revenue from passenger traffic in the late 1980s.

Train services started from Kafanchan, North Central headquarters to Kagoro town (Kaduna State) to Jos town and then to Kuru town (Plateau State), connecting passengers to Bauchi and Maiduguri.

Another route was from Kafanchan to Gudi, Bedi and Lafia (Nasarawa State), from there to Makurdi, Otukpo to another station in Benue State, where Kafanchan District terminated. It also connects Enugu district downwards the eastern states and ended in Port Harcourt.

The movement of goods from the North to East and vice-versa enhanced the socio-economic life of the benefitting areas.

The railway has its headquarters in Lagos with the flagship Lagos District covering Apapa, Tincan Island, Ebutte-Meta to Ibadan, Oyo State.

Ibadan District, named as Western District (IB), covers Oshogbo, Abeokuta and Offa with its terminal at Jebba town in Kwara State, with its district headquarters in Ibadan.

Minna District (MX) covers Mokwa town in THE then Kwara State to Zungeru, Minna town in Niger State and terminates at Kakau town in Kaduna State with its headquarter in Minna.

Zaria District starts from Kakau to Kaduna and Zaria towns; Zaria being a junction to Funtua in Katsina State to Gusau and Kaura Namoda in Zamfara.

Zaria town in Kaduna State to Kano (Kano State), Ringim and Kaugama towns in Jigawa State, terminating at Nguru town in Yobe State, has its district headquarters in Zaria.

Bauchi District, named as North Eastern District (NED), starts from Maiduguri town in Borno State through Gombe town in Gombe State to Bauchi in Bauchi State and terminates at Haipan town in Plateau State, with its headquarters in Bauchi.

Kafanchan District, named as North Central District (NCD), starts from Jos in Plateau State to Kafanchan, Kaduna State, through Lafia in Nasarawa State to Makurdi and Otukpo towns in Benue State and terminates at Utonkon in Enugu State.

The Kafanchan railway station, which used to be a bustling town 30 years ago, is now in a sorry state.

The station has been reduced to a bushy abode of reptiles. Some houses at the staff quarters have been vacated because of excessive damage, making them inhabitable. Some of the coaches and wagons at the station as seen by our correspondent have long become home to mice, lizards and other reptiles, while one among the three workshops visited is completely damaged.

“We had Lagos-Jos (3PL), Lagos-Maiduguri (11ML) and Kano-Port Harcourt, and each had no fewer than 16 to 17 wagons with 96 passengers, in addition to the daily mass transit from Kaduna to Kafanchan every day, apart from cattle train from Maiduguri to Port Harcourt, Kaduna to Maiduguri and Port Harcourt to Kaduna thrice a week.

“But now, all the coaches have completely dilapidated, with no single train. They need overhauling. In the late 1980s we had up to 15,000 staff in the North Central district, but now, we have between 2,000 and 3,000. Some have died while some retired,” said one of the staff who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

He said the railway needed a standard gauge rather than the present narrow gauge.

One of the challenges they are facing, he told our correspondent, was inadequate staff and lack of in-house training.

“We have training schools like the one here in Kafanchan but there is nothing to show in terms of training members of staff. The need for rehabilitating the rail tracks and the issue of insecurity are among the challenges we are facing,” he added.

He also mentioned lack of sufficient locomotives and staff’ motivation, adding, “Staff were stagnated in some departments without proceeding to certain levels in their whole career. This is not encouraging at all.”

On revamping the moribund station, he said the Kaduna State Government, as an investor, was making efforts, but added that to rejuvenate rail transportation required more than investments.

High cost of diesel forced NRC to suspend operation in northern district

Daily Trust on Sunday reports that high cost of diesel has forced the Nigeria Railway Corporation to suspend operation on the Lagos-Kano and Kano-Nguru routes, among others, in the northern district.

The northern district comprises Kaduna, Kano, Jigawa, Yobe, Katsina and Zamfara states. However, all the lines within the district were perfect.

Checks by our correspondent at the regional district office in Zaria revealed that as at November last year, repairs on the Zaria-Kano-Minna-Lagos route were completed.

Our correspondent also learnt that there was no date of resumption of operation on the Lagos-Kano rail service, Kaduna-Kano and Kaduna-Kafanchan rail mass transit programmes due to high cost of diesel.

It was also learnt that as at July last year, the NRC lost N1million when it ran the Kano-Nguru route.

A railway worker said that before the suspension of services, the Kano-Nguru train would leave Kano in the evening of Monday and arrive at Nguru the following morning; the train would leave Nguru on Tuesday night and arrive in Kano on Wednesday morning.

He said the Kano-Lagos train service was very important for conveying cargo at the Kaduna, Kano and Funtua dry ports. 

Also, the Kauran-Namoda train service, which was usually on Fridays, has not resumed, years after an accident involving the coaches.

According to our sources, the accident was caused by the activities of saboteurs who vandalised the rail track, as well as the destruction of the locomotive involved in the accident.

The regional manager, northern district, Habib Alaka, an engineer, declined comment, saying he did not have the authority of the managing director of the NRC to speak to the press.

Meanwhile, some residents of Zaria, who lamented the evacuation of some coaches to unknown destinations, expressed worry that the situation might cripple the activities of railway operation in the region.

They said two coaches were seen evacuated with a crane and loaded on a long vehicle to an unknown destination.

Checks by Daily Trust on Sunday revealed that the coaches were “motor cars” that had been transported to Plateau State.

A railway engineer said the “motor cars” were meant to power some locomotives for easy operation.

He said a “motor car” (motor coach) is a self-propelled vehicle capable of hauling a train. With multiple unit train control, one operator can control several motor coaches, possibly even combined with locomotives, efficiently in the same train, making longer trains possible.

“Motor coaches can replace locomotives at the head of local passenger or freight trains. Electrified narrow gauge lines especially often saw this form of operation,” he said.

He wondered why people should be alarmed by the “routine operation” of the corporation, noting that all coaches belong to the federal government, and therefore, “can be moved to any location where their services are needed.”

“These motor cars were needed in Plateau State because the government was reviving its intra-city service operation; hence the need for such coaches to enhance operation. This is only normal and routine and does not call for any alarm,” he said.

Kano train service halted 

In the past, passengers enjoyed train service from Mokwa to Kutiwenji and Zungeru in Kwara State, passing through Minna, Niger State to Gwagwada in Kaduna.

From Kaduna junction, the train, after picking passengers in Rigachikum, would have a stopover in Zaria before reaching Challawa and terminating at the Kano railway station. This has, however, stopped.

Abandoned coaches and wagons greet any visitor to the Kano railway station, now deserted because of the suspension of operation.

A member of staff of the NRC at the station said part of the reasons for the suspension of train shuttle service was high cost of diesel.

He said passengers on the Kano-Nguru route, a distance of 300 kilometers, paid N650, which could not cover the cost of diesel alone.

He said seven coaches were meant for goods and five reserved for passengers before the service was stopped in August last year.

Similarly, intra-city train shuttle service from Challawa in Kumbotso to Kano station with passengers paying N20 was stopped.

The NRC staffer said the service initiated during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan continued for some time until the supply of diesel from Lagos for the service was discontinued.

On moves to revive intra-city train service in Plateau State, the official said, “We are aware of the plan to revive the train service from Jos to Bukuru and to Bokkos, but after the incident in Maiduguri we didn’t hear anything.

“We previously tried to do the same here in Kano. I was personally involved but no breakthrough was achieved. We couldn’t see the commissioner in charge at the time.”

On the way forward, he said, “I think it would be good for the state government to revive intra-city train service because of the high cost of transportation now.

“If Challawa-Kano-Jogana route could be reintroduced and revived it would bring succor to many passengers.”

On challenges the NRC is facing, he said salaries of staff were regularly paid but no overtime and other allowances. He alleged lack of accountability in terms of money realised from sale of tickets.

Another challenge, according to him, is that staff occupying official quarters were asked to purchase the newly built houses, which many of them could not afford.

This, he said, was contrary to the earlier arrangement when the railway properties were leased and new houses built from the proceeds.

Inadequate funding hampering railway progress – FG 

The China Exim Bank, which provided funding for the Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge railway and other infrastructural projects in the country, was said to be slowing down in approving further loans to Nigeria. 

Appearing before the Senate Committee on Land Transportation recently, the Minister of Transportation, Sa’idu Alkali, had stressed the need for increased funding to drive the much-needed modernisation of the country’s rail infrastructure.

Daily Trust on Sunday reports that the federal government, in the 2024 budget, made a provision of N33.1bn for various railway projects across the country. The allocation covers several projects as listed in the budget document, ERGP 13177707.

The items include completion of Abuja-Kaduna, Lagos-Ibadan and its associated additional works, rehabilitation of Itakpe-Ajaokuta rail line and construction of 12 station building and tracks, laying works at railway ancillary facilities area, Agbor; completion of addendum 2a and railway ancillary facilities area, Agbor.

Other projects include the design, manufacture, supply and installation of rolling stock, supply of spare parts and maintenance equipment for the ongoing railway modernisation project; installation of signal and telecommunication system on Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri railway line; installation of acoustic sensing security surveillance system for the Abuja (Idu)-Kaduna railway system and completion of feasibility studies for new standard gauge rail line including Kano-Dayi-Kastina-Jibiya, including realignment to Dambata-Kazaure-Kastina-Jibiya-Maradi in Niger Republic; completion of feasibility studies for new standard gauge rail line: Kano-Nguru-Gusau.

NRC cites vandalism

While the various railway tracks across the country have been moribund, reviving them may be very costly as vandals have removed various tracks and slippers across the railway networks, the managing director of the NRC, Fidet Okhiria, an engineer, said.

Okhiria, who spoke to newsmen in Lagos, said the NRC had lost 100,000 clips on Lagos-Ibadan and Abuja-Kaduna train services.

“Just before Christmas, there was vandalism on the Lagos-Ibadan axis. It was repaired three days after the same spot was vandalised. We are looking for a way to manage the situation. We have had a management meeting on how to fix the issue,” he explained.

Lagos-Kano train to return in 2024

Our correspondent learnt that the Lagos-Kano train was suspended partly because of insecurity on the axis, as well as vandalism of tracks on the corridors. However, the NRC has set up a team to fix the bad portions of the tracks, especially in Kwara and Minna. 

Confirming this, Okhiria said the NRC would recommence the Lagos-Kano railway project as directed by the minister.

“We are working on it. We are looking to complete Minna and Kaduna in the next five days, with the support of the military and vigilante.

“On Itakpe-Warri, we also had vandalism issues but we came back after two weeks.

“Also, Port Harcourt-Maiduguri reconstruction is on; we don’t want to waste time so as not to risk vandalism,” he said.

He added that the NRC planned to bring back Port Harcourt and Apapa and partner with Funtua and Kaduna dry ports to expand the revenue stream for the railway.

How to source for funding – Expert 

A professor of Economics, Ndubisi Nwokoma, said the management of the previous loans taken by Nigeria had been an issue.

He said the best thing would still be to go for counterpart funding, advising the government to sit down with China to fund more projects on the basis of build, operate and transfer. He also said public-private partnership arrangement could be explored to fund some of the railway projects. 

He stated, “Nigeria does not have a good record when it comes to management of public debts, particularly bilateral and multilateral loans. Nigeria’s record of borrowing is not a good one, and now, we have over N87trn. I think it is not a good record. How did we manage the one we have borrowed?

“If you benchmark the cost of projects in Nigeria with other countries you find out that average costs are usually higher oftentimes if you compare the railway construction in other countries like Kenya, Ethiopia that borrowed from China too. I think our problem is actually management, efficiency in the use of funds.

“The government should look at areas that are more commercially viable in sourcing for funds to kick-start the various projects.”