Free train ride: We’ve moved 63,000 passengers, says NRC MD

Over 63,000 people have benefited from the free train ride declared by the Federal Government for the end of the year movement, Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Engr. Fidet Okhiria, said on Thursday.

He said the people were transported between December 24 and December 26.

Okhiria spoke with journalists in Lagos on the activities of the corporation in the past one year and plans for the coming year. President Bola Tinubu last week approved a 50 per cent discount for inter-state road travels, and 100 per cent for train trips, for Nigerians travelling to celebrate Christmas with their families.

The discount will run from December 24 to January 4, 2024.

The NRC MD said the Federal Government had under-written all the costs involved in offering the free train service across the system.

He commended the Federal Government for providing all the necessary support to achieve this feat.
The MD also advised passengers to obtain their tickets via the website as tickets are not available at the various stations.

According to him, the e-ticketing “is to enable us to gather appropriate information to profile people travelling on our trains.”

He also stated that railway workers had been mobilised nationwide to ensure that the directive of the President was enforced fully.

He said the free train passenger service was being offered on all the corporation’s routes such as Lagos-Ibadan, Abuja-Kaduna and Warri-Itakpe standard gauge lines.

The NRC MD also spoke on the problem of vandalisation of tracks currently affecting parts of Lagos-Ibadan and Kaduna-Abuja routes.

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“Over 50,000 clips were vandalised on the Lagos-Ibadan rail line; same for the Kaduna-Abuja track,” he said.