100 modern BRT buses hit the roads

ALL is set for the operation of state-of-the-art rapid transit buses in Lagos, running on designated routes of Sango-Oshodi-Obalende and Ikorodu-Island–Epe routes.

  The air-conditioned red-colour buses, numbering 100, parade modern facilities like wi-fi Internet services, cameras transmitting live feeds on the go, and all to run on schedule — helping passengers to plan their journey ahead using pre-loaded cards and online bookings.

  State governor, Babatunde Fashola (SAN) on Tuesday commissioned the buses, describing it as a significant step in the effort to connect the nooks and crannies of Lagos via public-private driven transport network schemes.

  Joined by other dignitaries at the official launch, Fashola rode in one of the buses from Headquarters of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) office in Oshodi, venue of the commissioning, back to the State House in Alausa.

  Managing Director of the LAGBUS Asset Management Limited, Babatunde Disu said the buses had been made possible by one of its franchisees, Metro Bus. 

   Metro Bus plans to steadily increase the fleet to 1800 buses, servicing a total of 47 routes.

  Disu noted that the transport scheme was already a big market for new investors with ridership or patronage increasing by 31 per cent with 64.5 million passengers moved by LAGBUS from 2012 to December 2014. 

  Managing Director of the Metro Bus, Niyi Oguntoyinbo said parts of the innovative facilities available on the buses are access through pre-loaded cards that would generate 5,000 jobs for mobile agents. 

  “Passengers can also send Short Message Service (SMS) to a designated number to know when the bus will arrive at their bus stop, because it has been realized that a lot of people wait at bus stops unnecessarily,” Oguntoyinbo said.

  He added that the buses had been equipped with facilities that would enable the operators see the buses in real time and switch buses from one route to another to gain efficiency.

   According to him, there would be security camera on board to ensure safety of passengers. The live feeds from the cameras will be made available to security agencies to be able to track any mishap. Customers can also use wi-fi on the buses as well as enjoy videos and music on the go. 

  But the nagging question on the minds of some Lagosians at the commissioning ceremony bothers on maintenance. 

  They asked: “Would the air-condition still cool in the next three months? Or the wi-fi services still allowing access two months from the date of operations? What will the buses look like in six months?” 

  Antecedents with current BRT buses gives very little optimism.

   Apparently not unaware of the maintenance issues, Fashola reminded the gathering that the BRT schemes were positive spin-off of a partnership with the private sector and least in control of bus maintenance.

  His words: “Government did not own the BRT buses; it is private sector that owned them. Our job was to build the roads, the bus shelters to maintain and manage them while they ran their buses.”

  There are issues with the environment, he said, adding: “The environment at the time they (investors) were borrowing money at one-dollar to N118 and interest rate at 10 per cent (to put buses on the road), has changed completely and a problem to keep the schemes running at the old rates.”

  He explained that when people see aging buses that are not being replaced on the roads, it is not because government is not efficient but because the private sector is being incapacitated by financial regulations and economic policies of the Federal Government that are not helping them to grow.