Here’re states passengers pay highest, lowest fares for interstate trips

Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, Adamawa and Lagos states have been listed as states where passengers paid the highest money for interstate transportation fares in the month of February, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The NBS in its February 2023 Transport Fare watch, said passengers moving from Abuja to other states paid an average of N6,200; those from Adamawa paid as much as N5,725 for moving to and from other states while passengers from Lagos paid as much as N5,090 for interstate journey.

According to NBS, the cost of the interstate journey by road increased 4 percent to N3,990 in February 2023 compared to N3, 836.45 recorded in the same period in 2022.

The report also listed Kwara, Zamfara and Bayelsa as states where passengers paid the lowest transportation fare to embark on interstate journeys.

According to NBS, passengers from Kwara paid an average of N2,000 for interstate trips; passengers from Zamfara state paid an average of N2,567 while those from Bayelsa State paid an average of N2,900 during the period under review.

The cost of journeys within cities also increased by 26 percent to N647,66 on year-on-year basis compared to N513.72 paid on transport within the same city in 2022.

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It further listed Taraba, Bauchi/Jigawa and Plateau States as those with the highest within-city transportation costs.

NBS said that passengers from Taraba State paid an average of N870 for a drop, passengers from Bauchi/Jigawa paid N800 while those from Plateau State paid an average of N790 per drop.

Borno, Anambra and Kogi states were listed as the three states where passengers paid the lowest transportation fare in the month under review.

NBS said that passengers from Borno paid an average of N500 per drop, those from Anambra paid about N515 for a drop while passengers from Kogi state paid an average of N530 per journey.

On journeys by motorcycles popularly known as ‘okada,’ the transportation cost increased by 21.67 percent N461.28 in February 2023 compared to N379.12 paid same period in 2022.

NBS listed Kwara, Lagos and Taraba as the states where passengers paid the highest fare per drop on Okada while Edo, Bayelsa and Sokoto states were among the states where passengers paid the lowest for a drop by an Okada rider.

It said passengers from Kwara paid an average of N760, those from Lagos paid about N750 while passengers from Taraba paid an average of N700.

Meanwhile, those from Edo paid an average of N158, those from Bayelsa paid about N190 while passengers from Sokoto paid an average of N250 in February.

Reacting to the report, Ayodele Balogun, a Lagos-based transporter blamed the rising cost of transportation on the rise in energy costs and rising inflation in Nigeria.

He said transporters spend more on energy especially when the person is driving a car with a diesel-powered engine. He added that the rising inflation is also taking a toll on the business because transporters now spend more to buy spare parts for the repair of their vehicles.