One million passengers targeted daily at Oshodi interchange – Managers

Managers of the Oshodi Transport Interchange, Planet Projects, say they are targeting one million passengers daily when the facility becomes fully operational. The company’s Managing Director, Mr Biodun Otunola, told journalists at the site in Oshodi, Lagos, that the number would enable the facility take care of one ninth of the estimated nine million passengers […]

Managers of the Oshodi Transport Interchange, Planet Projects, say they are targeting one million passengers daily when the facility becomes fully operational.

The company’s Managing Director, Mr Biodun Otunola, told journalists at the site in Oshodi, Lagos, that the number would enable the facility take care of one ninth of the estimated nine million passengers that journey through the Lagos traffic daily.

Otunola disclosed that the interchange, which began operation in Terminal 3, one of its three terminals, on May 1 last year, recorded 1.6 million passengers by the end of last year  implying an average daily traffic of 6,400 passengers.

Otunola, a transportation engineer and strategist, said Planet Projects was committed to making the interchange work to prove that Nigerians have the capacity to build and operate a complex transportation icon like the Oshodi interchange.

“This facility was built by Nigerians. There is no foreign labour from design to construction.

“During construction, we were able to demonstrate the advantage of Nigerians managing their own construction. For instance, there was no day we didn’t work on site despite the rains. Yet, foreign companies usually stop work during rainy season,” Otunola noted.

He added that Terminal 2, which he explained was designed to provide inter-city services, was being prepared for take off, beginning with trips to nearby capitals like Ibadan, Akure, Oshogbo and Abeokuta.

Otunola expects Terminal 2 to become fully operational by the end of February.

He said another boost to the use of the facility was the decision of Primero Transport Services to start running the Oshodi-Ikorodu route in November last year.

He also said plans to rent retail outlets had received good responses as over 300 applications were seeking the fewer than 20 outlets available.

Asked about the revenue side of the business, Otunola said the focus now was to make the terminals fully operational by achieving the one million per day passenger target.