Christmas impossible as cost of interstate travels spirals out of control

The Christmas and New Year holidays are special to many Nigerians because it is perhaps the only time of the year to spend time with family and friends, some of whom may not live in the same location.

To do this, many people undertake long journeys. It’s almost like a yearly travel tradition. And one thing that characterises it each year is the astronomical increase in transportation fares.

It is usually a beehive of activities in the days leading up to Christmas. And with the increased demand and a combination of other factors such as lingering fuel scarcity and higher fuel costs, comes the hike in interstate transportation costs.

At the time of writing this report, the interstate bus parks at Jibowu, Mile 2, Yaba, Ojota, Challenge, Iwo Road, Ojoo, Osogbo, Ilesha, Ado Ekiti, etc, were swarming with Passengers.

High transportation costs: Petrol has gone from N165 at the start of 2022, to between N190- N250 in most urban areas in the country. This increase in the price with its non-availability has compelled transporters to hike the cost of travel during the yuletide.

Nairametrics undertook a sample of some major motor parks dedicated to interstate travel in the Southwest to get a feel of how much passengers are paying to travel by road, the difference in fares between this year and the previous year and how passengers are reacting to this increase.

Below is a sample transport fare as of December 22, 2022:

Possible further increase: It should be noted that the above fares are not static as they could further increase amid the lingering fuel scarcity in the country. Also, more Nigerians will likely travel between Friday the 23rd and Saturday the 24th, thus increasing demand which will ultimately hike travel costs.

Alternative travel arrangements: The Lagos Ibadan Train Service offers an alternative to travellers in the Southwest axis who may want to avoid the traffic on the road, especially those undertaking trips between Lagos – Abeokuta and Ibadan. 

However, even that too has become expensive. The recent hike in train transportation fares was necessitated by the cost of diesel which is what powers the engines for the Trains.  

Below are the new fares as announced by the Nigeria Railway Corporation: 

We will continue to update the transport fares as the expected surge begins on Friday December 23, 2022.

Additional reporting by Zainab Iwayemi