In a bid to connect the nation by rail, the Federal government has revealed plans to revive the narrow gauge and integrate it with the standard gauge as a way of sustaining the route run by the old train pending the advent of a standard gauge to replace it.
Speaking in Abeokuta train station during an inspection of Lagos-Ibadan rail project at the weekend, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, noted that it was wise to still maintain the routes run by the old train pending when the government will construct standard gauge on such routes.
“I have directed that the narrow gauge should be integrated with the standard gauge since they can use the same facilities like stations.”
Amaechi who had earlier directed at the Lagos station that provision should be made for the station to accommodate the old train noted that “since it is the same passengers they (trains) both carry, they can actually operate from the same location,” he stated.
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The Minister emphasized that it was important to keep the narrow gauge working until when standard gauge will be constructed on those routes.
Explaining further the development on Lagos-Ibadan rail project, Amaechi said, “we will all agree that there is a huge improvement. From the 20th of December when we will carry out the next inspection, we will get to this place (referring to Ibadan) which means that focus will no longer be on the track but on the completion of the stations and instalment of communication and signals. Once we get communication and signals, we are out of Lagos-Ibadan.”
He stated that “we can commence test running on the 30th of November. We don’t have enough coaches and locomotives but we will start with what we have pending when the 20 locomotives that we imported arrive. They will arrive by the end of December or latest second week in January 2020.
On the challenges that have delayed the project, the Minister said, “we are dealing with urban renewal, we are building new flyovers, overhead bridges, underpasses, pipes, sewage and we pray that we don’t meet it in Ibadan to Kano. If we will meet anything like that, it won’t be in the magnitude of what we met in Lagos because it was total chaos and we didn’t get the kind of support we needed initially but now we have it.”
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