Lagos Light Rail Project: Blueprint for Economic Development

Babalola Yusuf Abiola

If Nigerians were asked to turn back the hand of time in their country, certainly what they would never have wanted to erase out of their life was an efficient rail system they enjoyed in the country during the time of the colonial masters till the late eighties when it collapsed.

Before the collapse, the nation’s economy was booming with leading manufacturing companies having preference for using the railway over articulated trucks to move their goods from one part of the country to another with relative ease and steadfastness.

Also, the functionality of the rail system promote trading among various states of the federation as traders moved goods easily from one part of the country to the other doing buying and selling with little amount of money spent on transportation.

Then, people prefer going to long distance with railway rather than going by road thus making the roads networks under stretched because the rail facilities were logically utilized. Though, the rail system was slow but the safety and convenience enjoyed inside a railway cannot be likened to what is obtainable in other means of transportation.

But, after the collapse of the rail system, the economy of the nation was affected so also were public facilities especially the roads network, it moved from its state of being under stretched to being over utilised thereby signaling the birth of horrors of articulated vehicles on Nigeria roads.

Though, it is a no brainer that the rail system is one of the drivers of the economy, but that most leading economies in the world have a functional rail system that is used for the movement of goods, human and material resources from one part of the country to the other have given credence to that statement. 

China, Japan, Germany, Dubai, Singapore and other leading developing economies of the world could boast of a functional rail system that is believed to be one of the major drivers of their economies because no country with serious economic blueprint will leave its rail system in comatose. 

Furthermore, rail network into the suburbs decongest the city centers’, to achieve this feat rail network are connected to the suburbs in other to transport a large chunk of people who works in the city but live in the suburbs to their different destination.

However, in other for Lagos to live up to its status as a mega city and as one of the most rapidly urbanising place around the world with a population estimate of 18 million there is a need for a functional and modern rail system to move human and  material resources from one place to the other in large volumes.

Lagos as the commercial nerve centre and a livewire to the country economy, with a functional seaport and airport movement from one place to another without a functional rail system has no doubt been a nightmare and at the same time overstretched the already over-pressured road network in the state thus making a need for functional rail system imminent.

However, the Lagos state government has seen the absence of a functional rail system as a huge set back to the economy of the state therefore, begin the construction of an ultra-modern light rail system under a public private partnership (PPP) sponsored by the Lagos State Government but developed by the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) on behalf of the state Government.

LAMATA has proposed seven lines in the network: Red, Blue, Green, Yellow, Purple, Brown and Orange with only the blue and red line under construction. China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) was appointed as the contractor for the construction of the first line (Blue). 

The contract includes the basic design and construction of the rail infrastructure with the detailed design and surveying for the entire project.

Consequently, with the first two lines of the urban rail project estimated to cost $1.4bn the Red line will be 30km long, and will run between Marina and Agbado. The Blue line will be 27km long, connecting Okokomaiko to Marina.

The Blue line will cost $1.2bn and will be funded entirely by the Lagos State Government with negotiations with potential investors for the operation and maintenance of the line.

The 30km-long Red line will use the existing Nigeria Railway Corporation corridor. It will be constructed through a concession arrangement Discussions with a preferred bidder for construction of the Red line are ongoing.

The concession contract will be for the operation and maintenance of the lines for a 25-year period. The scope of work for the concessionaire will also include design and construction of the infrastructure associated with operation and maintenance of the lines.

Also, the Red line begins as a double line at Marina and runs through Ebute Ero ending at Iddo. It then runs northwards via a reverse curve to reach Ebute Metta. The line runs straight to Yaba, Mushin and Oshodi before reaching Ikeja. 

At the Ikeja station, the Red line is linked to the line from the international and domestic airport terminal. From Ikeja, a single line will run to the airport terminals. The Red line moves as a double line further northwards from Ikeja to pass through Agege, Iju and finally reaches Agbado.

Taking into consideration the passenger railway service run by Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), the NRC passenger train from the north will terminate at the Agbado interchange. 

Passengers travelling to Marina using NRC services will change train at Agbado and continue their journey on the Red line with some of the Red line section from Agbado running on NRC corridor tracks.

For the Blue line, it starts at Marina station and runs along Ebute Ero and Iddo stations - same as the Red line. From Iddo, the Blue line running on an elevated platform moves along the National Theatre station and makes a descent at Iganmu to join the expanded Lagos-Badagry Expressway, Alaba, Mile 2, Festac, Alakija, Trade Fair station, Volkswagen station, LASU and finally reaches the Okokomaiko station where it ends. 

Also, it was gathered that the Red and Blue lines will have 13 stations each. Three stations in the south end of the Red line will be shared with the Blue line. The two lines will therefore comprise 23 stations in total.

The stations will have island-style platforms and commuter payment systems. Public address and electronic information screens will be installed in each station. The Ebute Ero station will also have an escalator.

A number of rail crossings with elevated road structures will be built along the lines. A total of 35 pedestrian bridges will be constructed over the Nigerian Railway Corridor. Cable ducts and walkways, in addition to drainage system with two walls will be built along different sections of the lines.

Between Marina and Iddo stations, a combined 5km viaduct rail over road and cable Stay Bridge will be built, linking the Red and Blue lines.

Other infrastructure to be built as part of the project include stations; signaling, control and communications (SC&C) systems; supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems; depot and workshop facilities; an operations control centre and a training facility for train drivers.

The Blue line will be 27km long, connecting Okokomaiko to Marina while part of the line that connect the national theatre to mile 2 will be completed in the next six month.

Moreover, the Red line is anticipated to operate with 12-car trains. More cars will be added according to demand. The maximum number of cars will, however, be limited to 16 a train. The 16-car trains will be 352m long and the 12-car trains will be 264m long. The cars will accommodate 300 passengers each.

The light rail system will as well employ the latest train authorisation systems, automatic train protection (ATP) and in-cab signaling in all of its lines. The wayside equipment will be minimised so that the drivers will not exceed the certified movement limits. The ATP will help to maintain the speed restrictions set on the lines. To ensure that the signalling is available even during power cuts, a backup power system will be fitted.

On the maintenance of the rail system, a reliable source in the ministry of information who craved anonymity said, “Lagos state government is creating an agency to maintain every project the present administration has embarked or will embark upon.”

According to him the money for the establishment of the agency is taken from the money budgeted for the projects for the continued existence of the projects in the state. 

Although, the rail idea was conceived in the early 1980s with the Lagos Metroline Network by Alhaji Lateef Jakande, the first civilian governor of the state but was, however, suspended by the Gen. Muhammadu Buhari government in 1985.

However, the idea was revived by former governor Bola Tinubu sometime in 2003 and followed up by the Fashola administration.  

Indeed, the project is deemed as part of the brilliant initiatives of governor Fashola. The projectswas also likened to the London underground line that has celebrated its 150th year since the first underground journey was made. 

The first stretch of the tube, previously called the Met Line made its debut on January 9, 1863. It has, no doubt, played a major role in boosting the economy of London by being a constant resource revenue generating system.

Certainly, if Lagos properly implements and effectively maintains the light rail scheme, it is believed that it would not only remain a remarkable legacy of the Fashola administration but a reference point for proper policy implementation nationwide.