[size=14pt]Intro[/size]

Exciting things are happening in the transportation sector in Lagos at the moment. It appears that we'll finally have our metropolitan train service up and running after waiting for about 30 years. This has prompted me to take a look at the transport system in Lagos; the history and the exciting new things happening at the moment. Enjoy.




[size=14pt]THE EARLY YEARS[/size]

An important factor in providing transport facilities in Lagos state has always been the aquatic nature of the state.

Lagos Island which covers a mere 1.55 sq. miles was a rather small piece of land. Yet, up to 1950, 65.4 percent of the population lived there. No doubt a contributory factor to this situation could be found in the lack of adequate transport facilities which would have encouraged people to live on the mainland and shuttle to the island daily for business.

It should be noted that besides the small size of the island, many parts of it were also swampy or waterlogged”.

Boats therefore became an important means of transport in the area now known as Lagos.


Boat on Lagos Lagoon

Scholars are now suggesting that boat making industry thrived in Lagos as a result of the availability of more durable wood supplied by her eastern neighbours.


The situation changed with the commissioning of the Carter (1901), Eko (1975) and Third Mainland (1991) bridges which connect Lagos Island to Lagos Mainland. Road transport gained primacy as the most important means of transport in Lagos.

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/lagos-fish.jpg?w=326&zoom=2[/img]
Boat on the Lagos Lagoon

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/third-mainland-bridge.jpg?w=326&zoom=2[/img]
Third Mainland Bridge

http://naijachronicles./2013/01/23/transportation-in-lagos/

http://naijachronicles./2013/02/07/transportation-in-lagos-part-2-the-early-years/

@ Naptu, its been a long time you posted another interesting thread."relaxes and watches with keen interest ". Thumbs up bro!

[size=14pt]THE LAGOS STEAM TRAMWAY[/size]

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/steam-tramway.jpg?w=326&zoom=2[/img]
Steam Tramway Engine.

Prior to the establishment of commercial road transport services however, Lagosians could ride on the Lagos Steam Tramway which ran between 1902-1913.

In 1895 the Lagos Government Railway began to force its way from Iddo, on the mainland, to Ibadan, and was opened six years later on March 4, 1901. Carter Bridge was completed the same year, construction having commenced in 1896, to connect Lagos with the mainland. Because of the mistake of terminating the railway at Iddo, Lagos, the administrative capital and port of the Colony of Nigeria, was without any public (or indeed, at that time, wheeled) transport to connect it with the railhead.

That this had been in the minds of the Administration is evidenced by mention of a tramway in the Colonial Report for 1899. By 1901 it had been decided to build a 2ft. 6in.-gauge line over Carter Bridge and construction commenced. The opening of the Lagos Steam Tramway took place on May 23, 1902.

The original line ran north-west along the waterfront, from a point near Government House and the European residential area around the Race course, to Customs Wharf, where it turned north-east towards Ereko Market and Idumata. A 95ft,-radius curve took the line north-westwards again, through Ebute Ero and over Carter bridge to the railway station at Iddo.

There was a run-in outside the station building, a short siding to the parcels office, sidings to the goods transit shed, five roads into the engine and car sheds and a run-round which encircled these sheds. The track was single, with seven passing loops en route. At the Post Office there was a double junction incorporated with the passing loop, connection to the Public Works Department stores, and a straight run-through from the PWD wharf to the generating station for direct coal transfer. At Kokomaiko, the terminus, there was a run-round siding, a 20ft.-diameter turntable, and a water tank.

The sleeping track was of 2ft. 6in. gauge with a route mileage of 2 miles 58 chains, partly laid on (not in) the streets and partly on roadside reservations. The running time was 21 minutes, giving an average speed of 7 ¾ mph. Fares were 3d. “all the way”, PWD to Iddo 2d., and Ereko Market to Iddo, 1d. The headway was 45 min., later improved to 30 min., with the first tram at 6.30 hr. to connect with the 7.00 hr. mainline train from Iddo to Ibadan. There was no running after dark (this timed the last tram at about 19.00 hr.) Freight services were operated 0 it was, in fact, the only link at this time between Customs Wharf for moving imports up-country and for evacuating produce from railhead to lighter. The tramway was operated by the Lagos Government Railway.

Rolling stock consisted of ten passenger trailers with longitudinal back-to-back seats, built by the Ashbury Railway Carriage & Wagon Company, of Manchester. They were 19ft. long by 7ft. 2in. wide, double ended and fitted with tramcar-type hand brakes. The bodies were constructed from tubes, with open sides and canvas screens for wet weather. The cars were four-wheeled, the axle-boxes being provided with coil springs. There were about 20 un-braked goods wagon, each 12 ft. long and 5ft. 6in. wide, all made by the same company.

Motive power was originally provided by three locomotives of a type unique among street tramway engines. They were designed by the Crown Agents for the Colonies and manufactured by the Hunslet Engine Co. Ltd., of Leeds, bearing maker’s Nos. 751-3, and LGR Nos. 101-3. Delivery was made in September 1901.

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/steam-tramway1.jpg?w=326&zoom=2[/img]
(Map) - Route of the Lagos Tramway


Box-car mystery

When writing the book “Lagos Steam Tramway”, extensive inquiries were made as to why these locomotives were designed in the form of an articulated combination vehicle. No solution could be obtained from the Crown Agents, the makers, the Nigerian Railway, or from aged Africans (Nigerians). Flexibility is one factor (the sharpest curve was 80ft. radius) but a conventional four-wheeled tram engine would have satisfied this requirement. A more important aspect was the 5-ton weight limit imposed over the Carter Bridge. The additional bogie enabled the locomotive to comply with this but it does not explain the box-car at the rear.

One purpose of this, we are led to believe, was the conveyance of His Excellency the Governor and other senior Europeans. There is no evidence that the box-car was used in general service and, while passenger cars were used by the African population, it would not have been deemed suitable at the time for senior Europeans to travel with the general public! Fixed to the rear bulkhead was shelving, which suggests that another use was the carrying of coinage and valuables between the Treasury, Iddo Station and the wharf, in conditions of security. More certain is the transfer of mail and parcels from Customs Wharf and the GPO to Iddo. This is borne out by the short siding which was provided near the parcels office – just long about enough to accommodate the Hunslet articulated engine.

The design must have served its purpose because a repeat order for a further two such engines was placed and they were delivered in Lagos in 1910, becoming LGR Nos. 104 and 105, works numbers 1016 and 1017. Identical in design, except for improvements to the motion and two 45-gal. tanks instead of 30 gal. ones, they cost £718 each f.o.b. Liverpool! It should be noted that it was not practicable to run these locomotives in reverse service, and this accounts for the turning circle at Iddo, the turntable at Kokomaiko, and the double junctions at the Public Works Department and the Post Office, where turning could be effected.

In spite of the success of the improved services and after much track laying and a deficit of only £248 in 1913, the Government took a very short-sighted view and decided to close down the passenger service, principally because the original rolling stock needed renewal. Closure was effected on January 1, 1914.




The Lagos Sanitary Tramway, built in 1906 (see The Railway Magazine, July 1964, page 581), which ran from Dejection Jetty to a junction with the Lagos Steam Tramway at Ereko Market, continued to operate over its mid-town route, via Strachan Street, Glover Street and Faji Market, until 1933. With its closure, the island of Lagos lost its only remaining railway.

(Culled from The Railway Magazine, February 1966)

Interesting, isn’t it, that Lagos, and indeed Nigeria, actually had a tramway system as far back as the earlier part of the last century?

It is also interesting to know that apart from the Lagos Steam Tramway, 23 May 1902 - 31 Dec 1913,  the British also built the following:

Bauchi Light Railway, Zaria-Jos-Bukuru (229km), opened in sections 1912-1914, Jos-Bukuru (16km) widened to 1.067m in 1927, rest closed 30 Sep 1957. Several locos and coaches are preserved near the zoo at Jos.

Wushishi Tramway, Zungeru-Wushishi-Bari Juko (35km), opened in sections Dec 1901-1902, closed 1910

Lagos Sanitary Tramway 1906-30 June 1933. Extended to a wharf and was used to carry "nightsoil".

(Source: Durrant, A.E., A.A. Jorgensen, C.P. Lewis.” Steam in Africa”, London, 1981, Hamlyn)

Gone are those days. What was left for us by the British as a legacy of colonialism, we found it difficult to build on, not to talk of sustaining and improving it, contrary to such in other parts of the world. That is the way Nigeria has gone, to the dogs, ruled and managed by inept, corrupt, incompetent, selfish, indolent and clueless idiots since the British left.

I do hope you have found this historical journey interesting, intriguing, fascinating and reflective. I have. And there’s more on the Lagos Sanitary Tramway and others to come.

[img]https://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/steam-tramway2.jpg?w=326&zoom=2[/img]
Lagos Steam Tramway station.

Culled from “On The History of Nigeria Railways – The Lagos Steam Tramway 1902 – 1913″ by Akintokunbo A Adejumo.

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/akintokunbo-a-adejumo/on-the-history-of-nigeria-railways-the-lagos-steam-tramway-1902-1913.html

http://naijachronicles./2013/02/08/transportation-in-lagos-part-3-the-lagos-steam-tramway/

[size=14pt]Commercial Bus Services[/size]

In the 1920s, road-based bus transportation was pioneered in Lagos by two Nigerians, Mrs Charlotte Olajumoke Obasa (a leading indigenous entrepreneur of that time) and W.A. Dawodu. This was followed by the establishment of J.N. Zarpas, a company owned by Levantine expatriates. Zarpas dominated the Lagos transportation scene until their buses were acquired by the Lagos Town Council in 1958 to form the Lagos Municipal Transport Service (LMTS).

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/history2.jpg?w=600&h=456[/img]
Lagos City Transport Service (picture from the Nigeria Handbook, 1970).

http://naijachronicles./2013/02/08/30/

[size=14pt]Bolekaja[/size]


[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/bolekaja2.jpg[/img]

The situation remained the same until the 1960s when many operators went into the transport business. This resulted in the emergence of the Bolekaja, which literally means “come down and let’s fight” in Yoruba.

Bolekaja was an average sized wood axial lorry that had only one wooden door at the passenger cabin at the back for passengers to embark and disembark. The sitting arrangement in the lorry (which was often over loaded) and the single entrance and exit point often led to fisticuffs between passengers who would tell each other to “come down let’s fight” (bolekaja). Bolekaja were usually made from Bedford lorry heads and locally made wooden passenger compartment. The government later banned the use of bolekaja for commercial passenger transport services and they are now used to carry foodstuff in rural communities.

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/bolekaja.jpg[/img]

[size=14pt]MOLUE[/size]

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/molue.jpg[/img]
Molue (Bedford bus)

Molues took over when government banned the use of Bolekaja, for commercial passenger transport services. The molue is a large commercial passenger bus usually painted yellow and black. When bolekaja were banned, some transport operators replaced the wooden passenger cabins of their bolekaja with locally made metallic bus compartments. Thus the first molue buses were of the Bedford variety. However, with time the Mercedes Benz 911 flatbed truck, which had been fitted with locally made passenger compartments became the preferred brand for molue operators.

It is not clear what the origin of the term molue is. Some say that Molue is the corruption of “Maul Him”, a description given to the vehicle by the city’s elite who are piqued by the incessant manner the large bodied buses tear clothes and even flesh of passengers while either entering or disembarking as they reach their destinations. Others say No thanks to the recklessness of 'Danfo' buses (smaller commuter buses especially the Volkwagen types) conductors on the converted buses often admonished their drivers to 'Molue' (a corruption of the word remould) the smaller buses when they obstruct the larger ones. From that moment on the term 'Molue' became associated with the big bully nature of the 911 model of commercial vehicles in urban Lagos”.

Molue buses were a common sight on Lagos roads. They were the king of the roads. From Ojota to Ketu or Ikorodu and from there to Iddo, a major terminus made popular by the now comatose railway system, to Oyingbo, a bustling transportation haven to Oshodi, Costain, to Obalende, and from there to Apapa, then Orile, Iganmu to Mile 2 and further still to Okokomaiko, on the ever-busy Badagry highway and on the southern fringes of Iyana-Ipaja, Pen Cinema, Egbeda, to Idimu and Ijegun, and other emerging satellite towns of the state, such as Alimosho, the Lagos Molue at a time, captured the terrain, becoming an opium of the commuting masses.

These buses were so popular that they were even printed on postcards, greeting cards and favoured as the face of a developing city state of Lagos. Because it carries more passengers, fares on Molue are often times cheaper than the smaller commuter buses. The afro-beat maestro, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti sang about them in his song "Shuffering and Shmiling", singing that in a molue we had "44 sitting, 99 standing". The 1980s group, "Too Cool for Zero" also paid tribute to the king of the road in their song "Molue, Lagos City Transport".

From wherever you boarded them, a ride in a Molue was an admixture of fun and tears. There, you might be unlucky to have your pocket picked by one of the extremely smart street urchins regarded as area boys, who deliberately crowded the two entrances, making ingress and egress a headache to passengers.


There was no decency inside the Molue. After filling all the seats, the spill over passengers were made to hang on a rail in what was usually called ‘standing’ in the buses. Passengers were so tightly packed that they made nonsense of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s mimickery of their plight in the song, Suffering and Smiling.The air inside the Molue most times are stale, passengers have to cope with the body odours until fresh air permeates the vehicle. Most Molues don’t have windows and passengers have to sit on bare planks which are crudely welded to iron bars by local smithes. A ride inside Molue during the rain can spell disaster if a special outing is in view, as one may end up drenched.


Apart from the steering wheel, the dash boards of most Molues are often barren of any functioning gadgets, the drivers who are often boxed in with a wired mesh, could be found dripping with sweat as they battle with the steering wheel. With no view finder and side mirrors, the typical Molue driver relies on his mates, better known locally as bus conductors to marshal the roads, and these barks instructions to him intermittently.

"O wa legbe e o, (there is a vehicle by your side), Wole wa, (enter this side of the road), O nbo le (a passenger is dropping) or more lewd ones like; Wole pelu senji e o, (enter this bus with the correct fare), O loyun o ponmo o (this passenger, obviously a woman is pregnant and carrying a baby), are few of the jargons of the Molue conductor.
The driver is ever in a hurry. Apart from when it takes off from its major park, Molue never stops. Whether you are dropping off the vehicle or boarding, you have to develop a running feet, as you practically jump off, or rush in, on motion. This act which has become the archilles heels of many hapless commuters have somewhat become the defining mode of recognising who just migrated to Lagos and who is a resident.


The Molue could be a market too. Itinerant merchants often make a kill inside Molue, hawking all manners of wares from the usual drugs to the cure-all herbs that take care of a thousand ailments. Standing at one corner of the bus, the agent projects his voice by usually cupping his hands round his mouth, clears his/her throat and begins by assisting the passengers to call out the many bus stops along the routes, before leading the passengers into prayers which often he/she uses to hoodwink them before bringing out his or her wares. Molues are also a veritable ground for peripatetic preachers. Many young pastors used the Molue as sound bites, from where they work on their confidence to handle microphone and address larger audience in the Church. It could also be a leveler of sorts, a melting pot for the upcoming middle class usually in his razor sharp edged shirts and tie and their female counterpart in their skirt suits, mingling and struggling for space with the pepper retailers, and the mechanics in their grease-blackened aprons.

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/01/a-molue.jpg?w=600&h=450[/img]
Molue (Mercedes Benz 911).

[size=14pt]DANFO[/size]

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/lagos-danfo.jpg?w=600&h=450[/img]
Danfo (Volkswagen Transporter)

Danfo is a minibus taxi that, like the molue, emerged in the 1970s. The origin of the word "danfo" is not certain, but some say it means "hurry" in yoruba.

The first danfo buses were Volkswagen Kombi buses which seat twelve passengers. Other models are the Volkswagen transporter (popularly known as FEDECO after the Federal Electoral Commission of 1979-1983 which had a fleet of transporter buses), the Toyota Hiace, the Nissan Urvan, Mitsubishi L300, etc.

The danfo has become the main means of commercial transport in Lagos because of the fact that it plys virtually all bus routes.


After a spate of kidnappings in the early 1980s the government decreed that all danfo and taxi drivers must be members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) and display their NURTW identity cards (which must contain their passport photographs) in their vehicles.

Since the law decreed that all bus drivers must be members of the union, union officials (touts, popularly known as "agbero" had a reason to forcefully extort money from bus drivers in the guise of "union dues", although nobody knows for sure what these funds are used for. Bus drivers must pay these fees or risk damage to their buses from the touts who remove seats, side mirrors, etc.


A danfo is thus a moving wreck. Some danfo lack side mirrors, rear lights, trafficators and even headlights. The conductors hang out of the doorway, the drivers drive without strapping themselves with their seat belts and the buses are often over crowded.

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/danfolagos.jpg[/img]
Danfo (Volkswagen Kombi).

A ride in a danfo bus can be quite uncomfortable. Passengers are often packed together like sardines. Danfo owners usually add more rows of seats to the bus, (to make it a 14-18 seater bus) which leaves passengers with little or no leg room. Some drivers blare loud fuji music from huge loudspeakers that are placed beneath the seats. Some danfo buses have lost the padding that’s placed in the ceiling of the bus to insulate passengers from heat or their windows are permanently sealed creating a very hot and stuffy atmosphere within the bus.

At most bus stops in Lagos, there are women or young ladies who peddle illicit gin and other alcoholic brews which the drivers consume. The spirits from these alcoholic brews possesses the danfo driver who takes off on a roller coaster ride, ignoring traffic lights, overtaking at bends and generally posing a danger to himself and other road users. Sometimes a passenger might unknowingly board a danfo bus that’s driven by one of these demon possessed fellows.

This coupled with the fact that most danfos look like moving tin cans means that other drivers must be wary of them. A danfo driver does not mind if his bus is scratched (the paint job is of poor quality anyway and the danfo is perpetually in need of a new coat of paint) or dented, since it already looks like a tin can, but the private car owner would not want his new mercedes or BMW to suffer the same fate. Therefore, danfo drivers change lanes dangerously and are generally a danger to other road users.


Since the early 2000s the Lagos State Government has tried to reform or ban the danfo system. The Tinubu administration tried to ensure that danfo buses were well maintained by requiring them to pass a Ministry of Transport (MOT) test, but the danfo drivers went on strike to protest the policy and the government had to cave in to their demands when stranded citizens started complaining.



The government also tried to ban the danfo from Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Lekki as a prelude to banning it from other parts of the state, but violent protests forced the government to rescind that decision.

The questions that arise for the future are; will the government succeed in banning danfo? Will the danfo system be reformed? Or will the danfo continue to be the symbol of transportation in Lagos?

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/danfo2.jpg[/img]
Danfo

[size=14pt]LSTC[/size]

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/a-lstc.jpg?w=215&zoom=2[/img]

The Lagos State Transport Corporation (LSTC) was a state owned company that ran transport services in Lagos. The buses were mainly mercedes benz buses which were painted red and white (see picture).

They had a free service, called scholars bus, for (uniformed) school children and they also had air-conditioned buses for regular fare paying commuters.

There were bus terminuses and depots at Keffi Street Ikoyi, Simpson Street Lagos Island, Race Course/Tafawa Balewa Square, etc.

Governor Rasaki abandoned his official car and used coaster buses instead, because he felt that his motorcade would be too long if he and his commissioners used their official cars. He donated the coaster buses to the LSTC when he was leaving office in 1991.

However, the corporation became bogged down by corruption and mismanagement, such that, by the late 1990s it had practically collapsed. When Governor Tinubu assumed office in 1999, he ordered an audit of the corporation and inspected their depots. He discovered that top management staff had been illegally selling the corporation's buses. Rasaki's coaster buses where listed as being beyond repair on the corporation's books, whereas, in reality, they were in good working order.

Nice one...
Makes for quite an interesting read

Good stuff, Front-page worthy, Keep it up mods

Another thing about Lagos is that petty thieving (snatching) tendency is as old as the city itself.

The patriach of our family (99 years this year) was telling me few days ago how his bicycle was stolen in Lagos in 1945. He parked outside, entered a shop, and before he came back the bicycle had disappeared. I wonder how that thief would feel, if he is still alive, looking back at what he did 70 years ago.

Excellent thread. I even gather that back in the early 20th century, the grandpa of Late F.R.A. Williams could be seen daily taking a train ride just for the pleasure of it. He would go from one end to another back and forth before disembarking. I wish I could provide the year right away but will need to look up where I read it and possibly post it later.

Lagos had been developed way before most regions of Nigeria not only because it was a colonial headquarters, but also because of its people who had been exposed to different cultures for a long time and because of its ports where trade was facilitated by the returned former slaves from places like Sierra Leone and Brazil.

another big one from naptu. o kare, oko ishilove.

molue = maul him

na lion?


molue = moldu e = mold am. came from the process of fabricating the sheet metal "moulded" and welded together to build the passenger cabin.

Lol at your write up on Molue! I remembered sometime early last year i entered a molue from Iyana Ipaja to Sango ota. I was to stop at kola bus stop. No be small thing o! na so one yeye woman pour pepper water for my beautiful dress. All she could say was "aunty pele ma bi nu ejoo ". Since then i stopped patronizing Molue buses. Danfo rider all the way!

See the famous Bole kaja.
I never had an idea of how it looked but head so much about it.

A little history and walk through some districts like Ebute Meta will remind you of a glimpse on how Lagos looked back them. Even some of the architecture still remains. The streets also still retain it's colonial days name and ambiance.

Damn! I love this city.

*****A picture hanging at the Library wall at the Lagos business school Victoria Island shows a bus along Agege motor road also known as Abeokuta road, you wouldn't believe that road was once a bush path****

We own Lagos joo...Lagos transportation was built with Oil money.

How will i ever forget LSTC buses that Festac Town residents enjoyed back in the 90's? How they just disappeared from the roads is what no one understood. I still give credit to Fashola for making BRT a success.

[size=14pt]FEDERAL URBAN MASS TRANSIT[/size]

In 1988 the Babangida Administration increased the price of petrol. This led to mass protests. In order to cushion the effect of the price rise, the government put in place the Federal Urban Mass Transit system.

Through this system, the Federal Government bought buses and distributed them to selected transporters and other organisations. The buses were high capacity buses (usually of the Mercedes Benz 1414 model). These buses were usually not painted in the Lagos State commercial colours of yellow and black, but in the colours of the organisation that owned the bus. For example, we had the Labour Mass Transit buses that were painted in the colours of the Nigerian Labour Congress.

A common feature with this buses is that they had "Federal Assisted Urban Mass Transit" written on them.

Am so so enjoying this thread..

naptu2: [size=14pt]FEDERAL URBAN MASS TRANSIT[/size]

In 1988 the Babangida Administration increased the price of petrol. This led to mass protests. In order to cushion the effect of the price rise, the government put in place the Federal Urban Mass Transit system.

Through this system, the Federal Government bought buses and distributed them to selected transporters and other organisations. The buses were high capacity buses (usually of the Mercedes Benz 1414 model). These buses were usually not painted in the Lagos State commercial colours of yellow and black, but in the colours of the organisation that owned the bus. For example, we had the Labour Mass Transit buses that were painted in the colours of the Nigerian Labour Congress.

A common feature with this buses is that they had "Federal Assisted Urban Mass Transit" written on them.

That is how a good government should work. when you increase the price of fuel, you subsidize the transport sector. This is where Jonathan failed woefully!

Unbelievable, this thread has only one view.

[size=14pt]CITY BUS[/size]

In 2003 the Lagos State Government decided to ban Molue and Danfo buses from operating in Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Lekki. The ban was the initial phase of a policy by which the government hoped to sanitise transport in Lagos. It was expected that the ban would subsequently be extended to other parts of the state. Hundreds of policemen and Lagos State Traffic Management Agency (LASTMA) offcials were stationed in Lekki, Ikoyi and Victoria Island to prevent danfo and molue buses from accessing those districts.

The government licensed City Bus, a company that was set up by Cross Country Limited, to carry out transport business in Ikoyi, Lekki and V.I. Cross Country runs inter-state transport services.

City Bus boasted tie wearing graduate drivers and conductors and airconditioned and neat buses and minibuses. The buses were painted white, with the blue-white-black city bus logo painted on the sides.

However, it's fares were way too high in some places and reasonable in others. For example, a bus ride from Obalende to Falomo cost 50 naira. The yellow and black danfo buses charged 20 naira at the time. There were also not enough buses.

Chaos ensued when agberos, who had been deprived of the money that they usually extort from danfo drivers and students of the Nigerian Institute of Oceanography and Marine Research, who could not get buses to go to school, attacked City Buses and damaged them. Commutters were stuck at bus stops because there were not enough buses. Huge crowds developed at the bus stops.

The government had to back down and allow the NURTW to create companies that would take part in the transport scheme. One of such companies is CMS Taxi and Motors Nigeria Limited (T&M), which runs a service, using buses that are painted green and white.

Standards broke down. In terms of quality of service, maintenance of buses, etc, the T&M buses were no different from the black and white danfo buses. The only difference is that the T&M buses are painted green and white, while the regular danfo buses are painted yellow and black.

City Bus stopped running transport services, because it did not make sense to compete against competitors that could charge low fares and use poor quality buses to ply the same routes. Instead, City Bus gave rights to regular danfo bus drivers to use buses painted in City Bus colours.

As a result of this policy, commercial buses that ply routes in Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Lekki are painted either green and white or white, while commercial buses that ply routes in the rest of Lagos are painted yellow and black.

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/a-a-city-bus.jpg?w=313&zoom=2[/img]
Ramshackle City Bus and green and white T&M bus (after the failure of the policy).

I entered molue once.

it is.out of this world

Brand_new: Unbelievable, this thread has only one view.

Seun, there is an error on the view counting algorithm for this page. I believe the initialisation part of the code is malfunctioning....

Tony Spike:

Seun, there is an error on the view counting algorithm for this page. I believe the initialisation part of the code is malfunctioning....

I noticed that too. some threads on the fp also have the same errors

WHAT OF BRT BUS?

I particularly enjoyed reading the write-up on "Molue". I never met "Bolekaja",but i find reading it very hilarious.

[size=14pt]BRT[/size]

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/obanikoro2.jpg?w=313&zoom=2[/img]
Obanikoro BRT bus stop

The Lagos Bus Rapid Transit System, also known as Lagos BRT, is a bus rapid transit system in Lagos State, Nigeria, which is owned by the Lagos Metropolitan Transport Authority (LAMATA).

The first phase of the Lagos BRT was opened on March 24, 2008 with 100 buses, although it was initially slated for opening in November 2007 (the initiative to build the system was initiated by the government of the previous governor, Bola Tinubu). It went from Mile 12 through Ikorodu Road and Funsho Williams Avenue up to CMS. At the time the BRT Corridor was 22 km in length.


One of the benefits of the BRT system is the physically segregated lanes.

The BRT system in Lagos is run on 3 models; (1) segregated lanes (2) priority lanes (3) regular bus service.

1) Segregated lanes: A concrete divider is erected on the road to section off one lane from the others. The sectioned off lane is reserved for BRT buses. This ensures that the BRT buses are not caught up in traffic jams.

Segregated lane
[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/brt-segregated.jpg?w=301&zoom=2[/img]



2) Priority lanes: A yellow line is drawn on the road to demarcate the BRT lane. At peak periods (rush hour, etc) this lane is reserved for BRT buses. At other times any vehicle can use this lane.


Priority lane
[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/brt-priority.jpg?w=326&zoom=2[/img]

3) Regular bus service: There is no segregated or priority BRT lane.


The Lagos State Government maintains the BRT lanes, while concessionaires procure and maintain the buses.

Concessionaires on the BRT scheme include LAGBUS Asset Management Company (which is owned by the Lagos State Government), National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) Cooperative, Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), etc.


The buses are painted either blue or red. Some buses are air-conditioned, while others have fans in them. Some buses also have flat screens in them and passengers are treated to movies while they commute to their destinations.

Passengers purchase bus tickets from ticketers stationed at the various bus stops. Payment can also be made with the passenger's debit card, via POS terminals placed in the buses.

Concessionaires also make extra income via advertisements pasted on the sides of the buses. Paid adverts are also played on the Flat screen TVs.

New routes have been opened including Yaba to CMS, Obalende to Ikorodu, Obalende to Ajah, Oshodi to CMS, Oshodi to Obalende, Broad Street to Egbeda, etc.

Some of the routes have segregated lanes (eg Yaba to CMS), while some use priority lanes (eg Obalende to Oshodi).

On Ikorodu Road, the introduction of the BRT system has led to restrictions on which vehicle can ply which lane. Danfo and molue buses are restricted to the service lanes, private vehicles can ply the express and the service lanes, while only BRT buses are allowed to ply the BRT lane.

In recent years, citizens have complained about the state of the BRT buses. Some of the buses are very dirty and look like they have not been washed in months. The glue from advertisements pasted on the bus also glues dirt to the bus and sometimes peels off the paint.

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/brt-segregated-2.jpg?w=300&zoom=2[/img]

[img]http://naijachronicles.files./2013/02/brt.jpg[/img]

I met Lagos City Transport Service where my father worked for years and that picture from the Nigeria Handbook is at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Street bus stop just near the Tinubu Square.

Bookmarked!

This guy is our resident Nairaland sage. Thumbs up.

Excellent!!!!!!!!!!!