There was human traffic at Abuja train stations on Friday following the Federal Government’s announcement of free rides for passengers as part of the Yuletide celebration.
The Trumpet had reported that the federal government on Monday approved free train rides for commuters nationwide from December 20, 2024, to January 5, 2025.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, made this known while speaking with Journalists in Abuja. He disclosed that the development is part of measures to ease transportation costs during the Christmas and New Year celebrations,
He said: “As we did last year, there will be free train service to all Nigerians from December 20 up until January 5, free train service nationwide.
“This is consistent with the president’s desire to cushion the effect of transportation, especially to the most vulnerable Nigerians.
“Recall that this also happened in the last Christmas period and the Sallah period. And the president has also approved that this year.”
However, the free train ride commenced on Friday, as passengers praised the initiative, saying it was timely.
Our correspondent who visited Kubwa station of Abuja – Kaduna train routes witnessed the processes, as commuters were asked to write down their names and National Identification Number (NIN) to gain access into the train.
Read also: Netizens react as Wike revokes plot allocations to Buhari, speaker, Akume, others
At the departure terminal, some passengers who arrived early,.spoke with The Trumpet and expressed their excitement.
One Musa said, ”If not for this free train, I wouldn’t have travelled to my village this year, I am so happy.”
For Mr Chinedu “I tried to book online to travel to Kaduna but was not successful as the train was overbooked. Am happy that I can book manually.”
While one Mrs Amina commended the federal government for its intervention which removed the burden of high transport fares amidst current hardship faced by Nigerians due to the fuel subsidy removal.
The train service connecting Abuja to Kaudna runs twice daily, departing around 8am while commuters could also board the evening service train which departs around 2:30 pm.
