The Lagos State Government has assured that the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (LRMT) Red Line project will be completed before the end of 2022 as earlier promised.
The project which is being developed by the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) and has the capacity to transport 500,000 passengers daily, is expected to commence operations in the first quarter of 2023.
The assurance was given by the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Sunday while on an extensive inspection tour of the ongoing construction activities around the Red Line project.
Sanwo-Olu, who was joined on the project tour that lasted for 4 hours by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, and members of the cabinet, expressed satisfaction on the quality of the work done, disclosing that most of the difficult tasks had been completed.
What the Lagos State Governor is saying
Sanwo-Olu said the entire construction of the project has moved into the finishing phase in which precast beams and other concrete fittings are being coupled to the constructed structures.
- The Governor said, “The Red Line is a project conceived and started by our Government, which will be delivered in the lifetime of this administration. We have given our commitment to ensure the project is completed by the end of this year as promised. This is our fourth inspection trip on this project within the year alone and each time we come, there is significant progress that the contractor achieves along the rail corridor.
- “Along the rail corridor, there is massive regeneration that is taking place and we have paid extensive amounts in terms of compensation, far more than anyone else, for those affected by the construction activities. That is why we don’t have problems with members of the communities on this corridor. After inspecting the Agege station, we went on to check the Ikeja terminal, which happens to be the iconic station of the Red Line. Its size is almost about the size of three football fields together.
- “As we have seen, all the stations inspected are at the roof level, moving into the completion stage. The civil work has been completed; it’s just the finishing job we are doing at the moment. All the activities are on schedule and we are hoping the best and that the entire project will be completed by the end of the year. There are places that were particularly challenging for the contractor to do drilling due to high vehicular density. All the challenges have been overcome; what is left is concrete in-situ and placing of precast beams.”
Governor Sanwo-Olu who would be making a fourth inspection tour of the 37-kilometre-long rail infrastructure with its various stations and terminals, earlier visited the Agege Terminal, Iconic Ikeja station, Mushin Terminal, Yaba and Oyingbo stations among other project sites.
He said the construction work on the overpasses were at different stages of completion but assured that all work would be done by December.
The Governor said the work on the bridge on Awolowo Way onto Agege Motor Road and inward Mongoro Bus Stop remained on track and would finish by the end of October.
Sanwo-Olu said the Mushin overpass, which crosses from Kayode Street at Ikorodu Road to Agege Motor Road in Mushin, and the one at Yaba from Tejuosho exiting onto Murtala Muhammed Road, would be completed by November.
To eliminate human interference with the rail corridor, the Governor said the rail passageway would be walled off the residential areas. This, he said, would also prevent encroachment and unapproved commercial activities around the corridor.
What you should know
- The 37-kilometre Red Line rail project which was flagged off by Governor Sanwo-Olu, in April 2021, is expected to have 8 train stations from Agbado to Oyingbo in the first phase, while terminating at Iddo in the second phase
- The Red Line is part of the state government’s vision of an integrated multimodal transportation system contained in the State’s Strategic Transport Master Plan (STMP), developed by LAMATA, which aims ultimately to birth a world-class transportation network that will support the state’s profile, as the economic capital of Nigeria and Africa.
