PH Urban Mass Transit Service Takes-Off 2015 – MD

The Port Harcourt Urban
Mass Transit Service is to commence in the first quarter of 2015.
The Managing Director of Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Engr Adesey Sijuwade disclosed this during the flag-off of the Eastern Rail Line of Enugu – Port Harcourt – Enugu Intercity Trans Service at Port Harcourt station last Tuesday.
Sijuwade said the Urban Mass Transit Service would drastically reduce congestion along Aba Road, adding that the service will originate from Port Harcourt through Diobu Market Halt, Diobu Halt, D/Line, Trans-Amadi, Elelenwo, Kom-kom and terminate at Imo River station.
According to him, the Corporation would soon commence the popular Enugu-Eha Amufu Market Train Service passing through Emene, Timber Shed, Ogbaho, and terminate at Eha-Amufu.
Regarding freight services, we will be commencing container traffic from Port Harcourt to major cities along the Eastern line which will include movement of PZ soap products from Aba and Grand Cereal Products from Jos, Plateau State,” he noted.
The Managing Director further hinted that as they are flagging-off the first in the series of proposed flag-offs along the Eastern line, they intend to flag-off other sections of the line from Enugu to Makurdi, Lafia, Kafancha, Kuru, Banchi-Gombe with a branch line from Kafanchan-Kaduna by the end of January 2015.
He announced that once the challenges of insurgency are fully addressed, they would strive to complete the rehabilitation of the section from Gombe – Maiduguri and commence train services.
Explaining the movement of the flagged-off of Enugu-Port Harcourt – Enugu Intercity Passenger train, he said it would run three return trips per week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Sijuwade hinted that the train would depart Enugu at 7:00am prompt and would stop at five intermediate stations, Ovin, which is a densely populated passenger station, adding that Umuahia, the capital city of Abia State, Omoba, Aba where the famous Ariaria Market is situated, it will move to Imo River which is the boundary of Aba and Rivers State.
According to him, on arrival at Port Harcourt, the train will wait for about an hour or two and commence the return journey back to Enugu at 3:00pm to arrive Enugu same day later in the evening.
He, however, revealed that the Eastern line rehabilitation had been challenging with the Aba gully erosion, and the construction and completion of about 30m length of the track in September 2010, construction of a 5m wide reinforced concrete culvert over a length of 366m to resolve the problem, the Aba mountain of refuse which was about 5m high and the total collapse of Bridge No 15 along Nyama River, but that today they are all history.
The Managing Director commenced the Federal Government for its Transformation Agenda of the railway sector and promised commuters of better, safe and reliable services.
 

Collins Barasimeye