Interchange records 30,000 passengers in 1 day

By Ladapo Kolade

For the first time, passenger traffic at the Oshodi Interchange exceeded expectation Thursday September 3 this year, recording 30,000 passengers in one single day.

According to Planet Projects, managers of the facility, the upsurge is attributed to the opening on Monday September 1 this year of the Terminal 1 for inter-city operations, a move that brought many buses formerly using illegal parks around the interchange to move to the terminal to load passengers.

Not less than 450 buses loaded passengers from the terminal on Thursday.

The plan to integrate the inter-city buses has been on the cards since Terminal 3 was opened in June last year for intra-city operations, making it possible for the Lagos Bus Services Company and the Primero Transport Services to pick commuters from the interchange to over 20 destinations across the  cities of Lagos State.

But the opening of Terminal 1 required the agreement of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) whose members dominated the inter-city operations and were nursing fears that their vehicles might not meet the conditions for using the terminal.

Terminal managers, Planet Projects, had projected that, to give passengers using the facility qualitative customer experience and set new standards in inter-city commuting, the buses that would pick passengers would be air-conditioned and meet the standards set by the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation.

The idea was to avoid cases of vehicles breaking down on the highway thus exposing passengers to the risk of insecurity.

ECHONEWS learnt that the talks were progressing smoothly as the leadership of the NURTW assured that it would procure buses that meet the standards.

However, as it was taking time to tidy the deal, it was agreed to take the first step forward by bringing the buses currently plying inter-city routes into the facility while gradual upgrade of their vehicles to meet the required standards will begin.

According to sources, on August 31, this year, the chairman of the NURTW, Lagos State, Comrade Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly known as MC Oluomo, contacted the management of Planet Projects that the Union was set for the operations and has directed buses plying the inter-city routes from Oshodi and environs to load at the terminal on the first day of September, this year.

It was indeed a carnival of sorts as buses hooting and revving besieged terminal 1 as early as 6am on Tuesday in compliance with the directive of the Union.

In what is clearly a new dimension to their operations, passengers now have to queue at the ticket counters of their destinations to pay for their trips before they are allocated to the buses on the basis of turn by turn.

The event, which was hosted by the managing director of Planet Projects, Engr. Biodun Otunola, was attended by the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Transportation, Mr. Oluwatoyin Fayinka, the managing director of the state’s investment company, Ibile Holdings, Mr. Abiodun Amokomowo, the representative of the NURTW chairman, Comrade John Owolabi and a former  Commissioner for Information & Strategy, Mr. Kehinde Bamigbetan.

Emphasising the company’s commitment to first class service, Engr. Otunola said the project was built by Nigerians for Nigerians without any foreign labour and shows that the country has the personnel that can deliver globally competitive projects.

“We are resolutely committed to providing first class passenger comfort in this terminal. We are determined to make this place a reference point and tourist arena. We are assuring every passenger of premium safety. We are not going to scale down the comfort and security of anyone who patronises our terminals,” he said.

Commending the project, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation described the interchange as the first of its kind in Nigeria, adding that 21 ticketing booths exist at the inter-city terminal to destinations across  Nigeria are perfectly structured.

Fayinka commended the contractor and facility manager, Planet Projects for delivering a world class and iconic project.

Stating the position of the state’s investment company, managing director, Amokomowo said Ibile Holdings would continue to develop the state’s competitive advantages of the state to make the state livable for all residents.

Also speaking at the event, Bamigbetan, who is also the publisher of ECHONEWS, the community newspaper that covers Oshodi–Isolo local government area, praised the Lagos State government for providing a huge asset that will provide jobs for thousands of residents and change the aesthetics of the landscape.

Planet Projects has announced in January that the interchange which was operating only terminal 3 for intra-city operations had carried no fewer than 1.6million passengers in the first 250 days.

It expects 50,000 passengers per day when the three terminals are in full operations.