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Though the Acting Secretary, Transportation Secretariat in the FCTA, Abdulhamid M. Suleiman said Department of Resettlement and Compensation has valued all the buildings and compensation would be paid as soon as possible.
“Enumeration and compensation of the structures on the entire 45.245km right of way have been completed except for the NNPC mega station, Advance Link, Forte Oil and Danzyl Plaza which are obstructing the work for the Abuja Metro Station in the Central Business District (CBD).
About 3.923km of rail is yet to be laid. This area covers mostly where there are bridges or obstruction like that in the CBD and it remains about 800metres rail line to be laid. The bridges at Ring Road 1 and the airport are other portions yet to be covered.
Aso Chronicle gathered that of the 13 railway bridges expected to be constructed, 12 have been completed while the entire T-beams required for the railway bridges have been completed.
Also, ballast and sleepers needed for the entire project are already on ground.
The Idu rolling stock depot, which is expected to have 20 buildings including a training centre, comprehensive maintenance and office complex at October had 65 per cent completion rate. The maintenance workshop, parking shed, washing shed, overhaul team quarter, service sliding complex building, commissioning room, water rheostat test room and general house were yet to be completed.
At the Airport Transfer Station, the completion of the launching of precast T-beams at the realigned airport super major bridge would take about one month to finish according to a senior official at the site while the national transfer station and the airport north station were yet to be completed.
While construction is still ongoing with the scheduled date of completion not feasible, the project has gulped US$515, 840, 482.14 (N80, 884, 442, 806.58). Documents obtained by Aso Chronicle showed that of the US$823, 540, 545. 87 revised contract sum US$ 515, 840, 482. 14 has been paid.
The Export-Import Bank of China (China Exim Bank) and Nigeria government jointly fund the project. The bank has provided US$500, 000, 000 as soft loan with the Nigerian government contributing US$323, 540, 545.87 as counterpart funding.
Abak said it got to a stage the bank could not release money unless “we bring our counterpart funding.”
Just rails no rolling stock
For the residents hoping to see trains plying the rails come January 2016, they would have to wait longer. Contrary to their expectations, the Abuja rail mass transit project would only put in place an engineering design, locomotives and rolling stock depot, buildings and stations without the rolling stock. The project as explained by a senior official at the Transportation Secretariat is like “putting in place an airport for airplanes. Ships cannot berth without seaports, so there won’t be rolling stock without engineering design and rail lines.
While corroborating the senior official, the Acting Secretary in the Transportation Secretariat, Abdulhamid Suleiman said, “procurement of the rolling stock which is the train cars or locomotives that would kick-start the rail transportation is still in process.”
Engr. Abak, the chief resident engineer overseeing the project also added that a diesel-powered locomotive to be procured by the government has already been identified. The locomotives, he explained is a hybrid that could later be upgraded.
A source in the Transportation Secretariat said the likely date for the commencement of the train transport in the territory is a policy statement, which can only be disclosed by the Permanent Secretary of the FCT Minister.
The hopes of many residents could be dashed if locomotives are not seen on the rails as soon as they are completed “because the contractors would have to test-run the rail for a period of time,” our source in the transportation secretariat said.
“After the completion of the project, the contractor must also run this system as least for one year for us to see. There are a lot of things to be done,” Engr. Abak affirmed.
The rail mass transit project owing to its large nature was divided into six lots covering the entire territory. Lot 1A and 3 currently executed covers Nnamdi Azikwe Airport, Central Area, Idu and Kubwa. Lot 4 will convey passengers from Kuje to Karshi while commuters going from Kubwa to Bwari would be captured in the fifth lot.
Lot 6 covers the Airport, Kuje and Gwagwalada to Dobi, in the outskirts of Gwagwalada.
Of all the lots, lot 2 is the most wanted, covering one of the largest traffic corridor in the territory, Nyanya to the City Centre, up to Kubwa.
The project, if ever it gets effectively completed, it would become a major yardstick with which the present FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello, could be assessed.
Residents feel there is need for quick government intervention in order not to make the project join the league of uncompleted projects in the territory, especially as it has the potential to engage directly and indirectly, at least 20, 000 persons.
Besides, the project would addressed transportation chaos in the territory, providing cheaper, efficient and safer transportation to hundreds of thousands of residents. It would also serve as a viable source of internally generated revenue to the FCTA, stimulating economic growth and job creation.
Ultimately, the Abuja rail mass transit would speedily transformed the city into a modern city as it would integrate the social, political and economic activities between satellite towns the Federal Capital City, thereby reducing traffic congestion drastically and saving lost man hours.