The governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun, on Monday inaugurated 17 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Mass Transit buses in Abeokuta.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the CNG mass transit buses, Gov. Abiodun said that the introduction of CNG Mass Transit buses in Nigeria would revolutionise the entire transport sector of the nation.
According to the governor, the introduction of CNG mass transit buses would reduce the hardship that many Nigerians face as a result of subsidy removal.
Abiodun said the initiative to introduce CNG mass transit buses in Ogun was a public-private partnership with a company called Spiro. This partner company, Spiro, had previously successfully deployed this scheme in other parts of the West Africa sub-region, the governor revealed.
He also said that Ogun was the first state to launch CNG vehicles for mass transit in the country in response to the recent removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government.
Abiodun said that the introduction of CNG mass transit buses would reduce the cost of transportation within the state, as well as mitigate against the effect of climate change.
What Gov. Abiodun said:
- “The initiative was clearly anticipated because we knew that the regulation of the downstream sector was eminent and unavoidable.
- “As your governor, I am extremely delighted that we are able to commence the implementation of this laudable initiative and I am bold to say that we have come tops again as the first state in the country to record this feat.
- “It is another successful Public-Private sector partnership with our partner, called Spiro, a company that has successfully deployed this scheme in other parts of the West Africa sub-region,” the governor said.
Abiodun further explained that the initiative would reduce the cost of transporting goods and services as well as provide training and job opportunities for thousands of technicians and mechanics around the state.
How the CNG mass transit buses would be deployed
Gov. Abiodun explained that some of the CNG mass transit buses would be deployed on campuses to assist students while others would be assigned to transport the civil servants.
He said some of the buses would operate along the Mowe-Ibafo-Berger axis while others would ply Kuto to Wole Soyinka train station in Laderin.
Other routes the governor mentioned the CNG mass transit buses would operate on include Onikolobo to Idi-Aba corridor and Ita-Oshin-Adatan route.
- His words:“Some of the buses will operate along the Mowe-Ibafo-Berger axis because the corridor is heavily congested with large cross-border migration.
- “Some will ply Kuto to Wole Soyinka train station in Laderin, some from Onikolobo to Idi-Aba corridor, while others will serve Ita-Oshin-Adatan route.”
Furthermore, Abiodun said in the near future, the fleet of CNG buses will be expanded to provide mass transportation for residents of the state around the Sango-Ota, Sagamu, and Ijebu-Ode areas.
- “As we expand our fleet, we will also deploy buses to major towns and cities, starting with Sango-Ota, Sagamu, Ijebu-Ode and this will provide mass transportation for our citizens particularly our young students in the towns and cities,” he said.
What is the load capacity of these CNG powered BRT Buses?
How many is the sitting and standing capacity?
Why am asking this question is because of the gross abuse of this Government and Governors noble initiative by the BRT operators and handlers!