By
Olumide T. Agunbiade and Olalekan Paul
WITH the capacity to
employ over 300, 000 workers, cover a distance of 57 kilometers and a
construction cost of about N500 billion (3 billion USD), the Lagos Light Rail
Project is arguably one of the biggest on-going projects in Africa.
The Light Rail is a bold statement by the state
government in its drive towards achieving a Mega City status for Lagos state.
Lagos, Nigeria’s economic hub accounts for about 65% of industry in the country
and contributes more than 70% of the nation’s economic output.
The light rail, which has its Blue Line near
completion, will transport 40, 000 commuters to and from work daily. The Blue
Line will have 13 stations and end- to-end journey will take only 35 minutes
approximately-a sharp contrast to the long hours it currently takes by road
coupled with the traffic nightmare.
According to CPCS Transcom, an infrastructure development consulting firm, and
transaction adviser to the Lagos State Government for the Blue Line project,
‘‘the infrastructure will consist of 27km of double track, 13 passengers
stations, and a 1250-metre 4-track bridge spanning the lagoon and connecting Lagos Island to the
mainland. The Blue Line will be the first of 7 light rail transit that will
eventually comprise the Lagos Urban Rail network.’’
On completion of the Blue Line, construction of
the Red line will commence. It will run from Marina to Agbado
in Ogun State.
It is expected that the line will share the existing 30 metres wide right-of-way
with the Nigerian Railway Corporation
(NRC) line.
China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation
(CCECC) is the engineering company saddled with the responsibility of bringing
the Blue Line project to a reality. According to Head of Human Resource, Mr.
Msa Tom Ijitoye who spoke exclusively to SF PR, the Chinese firm has spread to over 40 countries where more than 20
overseas offices or subsidiaries have been established. This construction
company was also listed among the world’s top 225 international contractors by
the Engineering News Record “ENR”.
The Blue Line will cost
$1.2billion and will be funded entirely by the Lagos State Government from its
own resources. The State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola in November 2011,
disclosed that the first 8 kilometres of the Blue Line light rail project will
be completed by May, 2012.
Despite being the
smallest state in the country (by land mass), the state has the second highest
population after Kano. According to 1999 UN study, the city’s population will
reach the 24.5 million mark by 2015.
The light rail can
therefore not have come at a better time when the city depends solely on roads
for its 75,000 commercial vehicles, 3 million cars and a population of
approximately 15 million people.
The Blue Line route will be on the surface,
running east-west, in the central reservation of the expanded Lagos-Badagry
Expressway-an expansion conceived to ease link between Nigeria and neighbouring
West African countries- between Igbo-Elerin Road (Okokomaiko) and Iganmu.
The infrastructure will
run on an elevated structure from Iganmu along the south side of the expressway
passing the junction with Eric Moore Road, crossing just south of the National
Theatre to Iddo, then south to Lagos Island with a terminal at Marina.
The Blue Line will
operate over a secure and exclusive right-of-way, with no level crossings and
no uncontrolled access by pedestrians or vehicles. Currently, construction is
underway between National Theatre and Mile 2 and a Maintenance and Storage
Facility (MSF) will be constructed at Okokomaiko, with a track connection from
the Blue Line depot.
The second line, the
Red Line is anticipated to operate with 12-car trains between 2010 and 2015. It
is expected to begin 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. It then 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 then moves as a double line further northwards from Ikeja to pass through
Agege, Iju and finally reaches Agbado.
There are practical
reasons to be excited about the Lagos Urban Transportation project. Good
infrastructure lasts a long time: commuters are still enjoying the fruits of
the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system developed by Lagos Metropolitan Area
Transport Authority (LAMATA).
In France, more
businesses have relocated their headquarters to the capital since the
Paris-Lyon high speed line opened in 1981.Since a new Spanish railroad opened
in 1992, Madrid’s business population has swelled at the expense of Seville and
Britain is still enjoying the fruits of the Victorian railway investment.
The Lagos State
Government might have settled for the purchase of 15-year-old subway cars from
the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). In May, 2011, key officials of the Lagos
State Government led by the governor, visited Toronto, Canada to inspect
facilities and number of used subway cars currently being operated by the city’s
commission.
The visit to Toronto,
Canada’s most populous city, allowed the governor to experience firsthand, the
operation of the city’s underground railway lines, which was first commissioned
in 1954.
In December, 2010, the
City of Toronto unveiled its new fleet of subway cars that will replace the
existing ones-being considered by Lagos. On October, 2011, a Lagos based
transport firm, Eko Rail purchased 225 Light rail trains from Toronto Transit
Commission (TTC).
The funding was
provided by Investec Plc, a popular finance firm who has efficiently aided well
over 25 rail projects worldwide. Eko Rail is expected to invest around $450
million to construct the Lagos Blue Line.
Experts on the Lagos
Light Rail project posited that due to the high cost of buying new trains or
subway cars, the state government has no choice but to settle for used ones.
The Blue and Red Lines
will have 13 stations each. Three stations in the south end of the Red Line
will be shared with the Blue Line and a combined figure of 23 stations.
The stations will have
Island-style platforms and commuter payment systems. Public address and
electric information screens will be installed in each station. A number of
rail crossings with elevated road structures will also be built along the lines.
Other infrastructures
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.
A total of 35
pedestrian bridges are expected to 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.
The economic value of
the project is unlimited. According to Ijitoye, Head of Human Resource, CCECC,
‘skilled and unskilled labour is being utilized and outstanding personnel have
been sent abroad to enhance their knowledge in construction.’
SF PR research
indicates that movement and larger market penetration of people to former
deserted areas of Lagos Metropolis such as Iyana Iba, Okokomaiko, Badagry,
Ajangbadi and Oke-Afon has increased in anticipation of the ongoing development
project. ‘‘Many people are moving back to their properties after abandoning
them for a long time.’’ Said Samuel Akingbade, who resides at Ajangbadi area of
Lagos.
The light rail system
will employ the latest train authorization systems, Automatic Train Protection
(ATP) and in-cabing signaling in all of its lines. The wayside equipment will
be minimized so that the drivers will not exceed the authorized movement
limits.
Former Governor of
Lagos State, Alhaji Lateef Jakande attempted to bring similar projects in the
1980’s when he tried to introduce tram services to Lagos State. The project was
scrapped in 1985 by Muhammadu Buhari at a loss of over $78 million to the Lagos
tax payers.
However, the project was later revived by
Governor Bola Tinubu in early 2000 when an initial $135 million proposal was
drawn as part of the greater Lagos Urban Transportation Project to be
implemented by the newly formed Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority
(LAMATA) and a formal announcement of its construction was made in December,
2003.
Meanwhile, Lagos State
Governor, Mr. Fashola has reiterated his commitment to continue reducing the
infrastructure deficit of the state in order to increase its rating as a
strategic business friendly city.
 |
| The proposed train station? |
Indeed, better days lie
ahead for commuters and their traffic pains would soon be over. The Lagos Light
Rail project which has recorded significant progress could be the solution to
the traffic nightmare that has plagued the city for over three decades.
PROPOSED
STATIONS
BLUE LINE RED LINE
Marina (shared with Red
Line) Marina (shared
with Blue Line)
Ebute Ero (shared with
Red Line) Ebute Ero (shared
with Blue Line)
Iddo (shared with Red
Line) Iddo (shared
with Blue Line)
National Theatre Ebute
Metta
Iganmu
Yaba
Alaba
Jibowu
Mile 2 Mushin
Festac
Oshodi
Alakija
Shogunle
Trade Fair
Ikeja
Volkswagen
Agege
LASU
Iju
Okokomaiko
Agbado
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