The Ekiti State Government has commenced moves to reduce transport fares by 50 percent with the deployment of 15 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses across the state.
Governor Biodun Oyebanji flagged off the buses on Thursday at the premises of the Ekiti State Transportation Agency in Ado-Ekiti.
The initiative, which coincided with Nigeria’s Independence Day and Ekiti State’s 30th anniversary celebrations, is aimed at reducing the impact of rising transportation costs on residents.
Oyebanji thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for providing the buses, saying the intervention would help the state provide more affordable transportation for its people.
The governor said the 15 buses were a pilot phase and that the state would expand the fleet to serve more residents.
He also appealed to transport unions to ensure that the savings from the CNG buses are passed on to commuters.
“The President charged all state Governors that by October first, we should find a way of reducing transportation cost,” Oyebanji said.
“What we have done today is just the pilot, 15 CNG buses which is going to be distributed to the unions and the agency will manage it.”
According to the governor, the initiative is part of efforts by his administration to reduce the economic burden on residents while improving access to affordable transportation.
Oyebanji, who was accompanied by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, also commended Tinubu’s economic policies, saying they had provided more resources for states to implement programmes and projects that directly benefit citizens.
Speaking on the deployment, the Director-General of the Ekiti State Transportation Agency, Tajudeen Akingbolu, said routes had been mapped out for the buses to operate from Ado-Ekiti to Lagos, Ibadan, Onitsha and Abuja.
He said the CNG buses would provide residents with cheaper and more reliable interstate transportation while helping to reduce the burden of high transport fares.
