Passengers who travelled via the rail system have dropped by 55.6% from 953,099 between January and March 2022 to 422,393 which was recorded between April and June of the same year.
Disclosing this development in its data contained in the latest report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), titled ‘Rail Transportation Data Q2 2022’. , the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) said revenue generated from train passengers in the country declined by 71% in the second quarter of the year, when compared with the first quarter.
The revenue drop was by N1.48 billion in monetary figures, as the decrease in the number of passengers had a strong effect on the revenue generation of the corporation.
It was disclosed in the report that the revenue generated from passengers in Q2 2022 was N598,736,300, while for Q1 2022, the revenue generated was N2,077, 836,686.
BizWatch Nigeria understands that this development may not be unconnected to the rising insecurity in the country, which has since several railway passengers killed, kidnapped, and injured in multiple attacks.
It would be recalled that in March, NRC suspended its Abuja-Kaduna train operations after some yet-to-be-identified gunmen planted explosives on the rail track and attacked passengers.
The attack occurred around the Kateri-Rijana area of Kaduna — close to the train’s final stop and left several people dead.
Meanwhile, just recently, the Federal Executive Council (FEC), in its bid to restore confidence in railway passengers and provide security, earmarked N718.19 million to two security outfits to protect the 45-kilometre Abuja rail tracks and stations.
Mohammed Bello, minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), said the private security outfits will guard key infrastructure on the rail tracks, the signalling and communication equipment, and the electrical system.
