LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)–The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has reported revenue exceeding N6 billion from train operations in 2023, despite a decline in passenger traffic.
According to the NBS report, passenger traffic dropped by 32.08% compared to the previous year, totaling 2,182,388 passengers in 2023.
This decrease is contrasted with the 3,212,948 passengers recorded in 2022.
According to the NBS report, the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) generated N4,426,495,760 by transporting 2,182,388 passengers in 2023, a decrease from N4,546,342,056 generated from 3,212,948 passengers in 2022.
Additionally, the NRC earned N1.079 billion from cargo business in 2023, up from N441.7 million in 2022. Other revenue receipts amounted to N565,843,550 in 2023, down from N607,800,662 in 2022.
Providing a quarterly breakdown of ridership, the NBS reported that in Q1 2023, the Nigeria Railway Corporation transported 441,725 passengers, a decrease from 953,099 passengers during the same quarter in 2022.
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In Q2 2023, ridership marginally improved to 474,117, up from 422,393 in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
Likewise, ridership in Q3 2023 reached 594,348, surpassing the 500,348 recorded in Q3 2022.
However, the decline in ridership last year resulted in a 2.64% decrease in revenue for the NRC, affecting both passenger and cargo traffic. Despite this, there was a notable improvement in cargo movement in 2023, with the NRC transporting 317,244 tons of cargo compared to 157,024 metric tons in the corresponding period in 2022.
According to the NBS fact sheet, the Nigerian Railway Corporation’s total revenue in Q1 2023, was N768,438,658, a decrease from the N2,077,836,686 recorded in the same quarter of 2022.
In Q2 2023, the NRC generated N1,100,941,295, up from N598,736,300 in Q2 2022. Similarly, in Q3 2023, the revenue reached N1,489,200,328, surpassing the N715,091,714 generated in the same quarter of 2022.
In Q4 2023, the NRC generated N1,067,915,479, showing a decrease of N86,761,877 compared to the N1,154,677,356 recorded in the same quarter of 2022.
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Additionally, the Federal Government announced a Special Intervention Initiative (SII), allowing travelers to ride on trains across its standard gauge lines and all other networks for free.
The free train ride was available on the Lagos-Ibadan Train (LIT), Abuja-Kaduna (AKT), and Itakpe-Warri Train (IWT) routes. Riders were required to obtain their free tickets online as ticketing centers across the country were closed.
The NRC Management revealed that the Federal Government provided the Corporation with sufficient logistics to support the 15-day operation of the free ride, which took place from December 21, 2023, to January 4, 2024.
Additionally, the initiative was extended by three days, concluding on January 7, 2024.
An NRC official who spoke to journalists attributed the decline in passenger revenue to reduced trip frequency, track repairs, decreased speed, and concerns about bandit attacks.
The official emphasized that the revenue drop was unrelated to diesel costs or ticket prices. They noted that the Corporation had not adjusted prices since 2022.
“Some of the factors responsible for the drop in revenue are; the reduction in the number of trips, reduced speed due to some bad portions of the rail tracks and fear of another attack by bandits.
“I think one of the factors for the drop is the fear that the train or the track may be attacked again. The train was attacked by bandits on 28 March 2022 and that led to the suspension of operations for several months.