Commuters still paying old fares despite Tinubu’s CNG directive, states say

Despite President Bola Tinubu’s directive that transport fares begin falling from October 1 through CNG-powered buses, commuters across several states say they are still paying the same, or higher, fares, Punch reports.

Findings by the outlet across Enugu, Anambra, Delta, Imo, Sokoto, Kebbi, Jigawa, Gombe, Edo, Plateau, Ondo, Osun, Oyo and Ogun states showed the directive had yet to translate into widespread reductions, with transport unions citing a shortage of CNG buses, refuelling facilities and conversion centres. In Anambra, fares from Upper Iweka to Oba remained at N700, while in Imo, a trip from Owerri to Akokwa cost N4,500, drivers said.

However, Ismaeel Ahmed, Chairman of the Presidential Initiative on CNG and Electric Vehicles, insisted that states including Borno, Kaduna, Zamfara and Ebonyi had already begun cutting fares, stressing that October 1 marked the start of federal monitoring rather than a uniform deadline for all states. He said Kaduna’s free CNG scheme had carried 3.2 million passengers and saved commuters over N3.5bn in its first year, while Zamfara had launched 100 electric taxis and Borno was charging as little as N15 per trip on electric buses, compared with N200 to N500 previously.

Some state governments, including Edo and Ogun, said they were preparing their own CNG rollouts in the coming weeks, even as commuters in those states continued to decry unchanged fares on commercial routes.