Lagos — The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is to formally commence its intra-city mass transit train operations along the Kano-Challowa route on July 5, 2010. This development is as a result of the ongoing efforts by the Corporation to revive rail transportation in Nigeria.

The take-off follows the successful delivery of one of the newly acquired GE 2,500-horse power locomotive engines to Kano; refurbishment of coaches and the completion of renovation work on the 19km Kano-Challowa rail line; installation of level crossing barriers, signals and telecommunications facilities among others. The new locomotive is named after Nigeria's late President, Umaru Musa Yar'Adua.

Engineer Adeseyi Sijuwade, Managing Director of Nigerian Railway Corporation, said that the commencement of operations in the Kano-Challowa route is the highpoint of the general renovation and rejuvenation project that the corporation embarked upon to provide an effective and efficient rail system in the country.

"The July 5 take-off of the Kano-Challowa intra-city mass transit train service signposts the corporation's commitment to bequeathing a rejuvenated, vibrant and affordable rail transport on Nigeria. It is especially gratifying that our efforts over the past year are beginning to pay off", he said.

He commended the Federal Government for its support to the corporation which stems from the government's recognition of the immense economic potentials that viable rail transportation has in national development. According to Sijuwade, "We are very grateful to the Federal Government for its unrelenting support to the corporation. The service take-off in Kano, one of the six towns earmarked for intra-city mass transit train service, moves the country closer to the realization of the rail arm of the FG's 7-point agenda of making Nigeria one of the 20 strongest economies in the world by 2020".

He said that the Kano-Challowa intra-city mass transit train service will boost the potentials of the tourist attractions along the train route such as Challowa River, Railway Bridge, the palace of the first Emir of Kano and the 500-year old water well called Rigiya Guntuku.

The rail route will also enable farmers transport farm produce from their farms to the markets as it will also help commuters and industrial workers in the area move to and from their places of work at very affordable costs.

It will be recalled that the Minister of Transport, Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman recently carried out a pre-inspection visit of the Kano Railway Station during which he expressed satisfaction with the level of work done along the route and reiterated the Federal Government's commitment to ensuring a successful completion of rehabilitation work on all rail facilities across the six major operational zones to alleviate the transport challenges of Nigerians.

The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is wholly owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria. It was constituted on October 3, 1921 by the amalgamation of the Lagos Government Railway (LGR) and the Baro-Kano Railway (BKR). It originally operated as a Civil Servant Department, designated the Nigerian Government Railway Department. It became an autonomous public corporation created by an Act of Parliament, the Nigerian Railway Corporation Act of 1955 as amended in 1990, giving it a monopoly position in the rail sector within the country.

Its services include movement of passenger, goods, parcels/courier; maintenance of track, signaling & telecommunication, locomotives and rolling stock; third party jobs, utilizing excess capacity; and estate management.

The corporation encourages third party concerns in rail business. It usually dedicates wagons/locomotives to clients who undertake the repairs and/or rehabilitation for their exclusive use and amortize the sum through freight bills over agreed conditions.