Provide road network to rail lines, Senate Committee of Land Transport tell state governors

Chairman, Senate Committee on Land Transportation, Senator Adamu Aliero, has challenged state governments to develop roads that connect to the railways in their states.

Aliero said this when members of the Committee carried out an inspection of Lagos-Ibadan railway infrastructure.

“It’s not desirable to have a railway station in your State where thousands and thousands of people are being transported, millions of tonnes are being transported from the seaport to the hinterlands without access road. Federal government cannot do everything,” the Senator said.

The former governor of Kebbi State said that a lot of achievements have been recorded in the progress of railway modernization and rehabilitation programme of Nigeria.

He pointed out that the programme started during President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, but could not continue till President Muhammadu Buhari took over power.

During the period that Buhari took over, a lot has been achieved. We have seen the Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge was commissioned by President Buhari himself. The link to seaport is commissioned. He also started the Eastern corridor from Port Harcourt to Aba.

“I’m happy that negotiations are going on now on the possibility of linking Aba to Enugu, Enugu to Makurdi, Makurdi to Jos, Jos to Bauchi, Bauchi to Gombe, Gombe to Maidugri,” the Senate Committee on Land Transportation leader recounted.

He bemoaned the burden placed on Nigerian roads, and expressed dissatisfaction that road regulatory agencies are not helping to stop the abuse of the roads by heavy duty vehicles drivers who carry tonnes of goods beyond what is recommended for some roads.

MIKE OCHONMA
Editor