LAMATA to cut travel time on blue rail line, increase weekly trips to 90 from Monday

The Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) says the Lagos rail mass transit (LRMT) blue line will operate every 10 minutes from Monday.

In a statement on Saturday, Kolawole Ojelabi, head of corporate communications at LAMATA, said the move is expected to reduce journey time by eight minutes.

He said the reduction in headway translates to about 44 percent in time savings and ultimately improves journey time.

“With the reduction in the headway, Blue Line trips will now increase to 90 from 72 on Monday to Saturday. The Sunday schedule will remain unchanged at 22 trips,” the authority said.

“To achieve the 90 trips daily, four train sets will be deployed during the morning and evening peak hours, while two trains will cater to the commuters during off-peak hours.”

Abimbola Akinajo, managing director of the LAMATA, said the headway reduction is facilitated by the new rolling stock procured for the blue line by the state government with support from the federal government.

“We are excited to facilitate the increase in the number of trips since our commitment is to have a world-class, sustainable transport system that satisfies stakeholders and drives the growth of Lagos,” Akinajo said.

“The increase in the number of trips and rolling stock foreshadows the operation of the entire Blue Line when the infrastructure is completed to the terminal point at Okokomaiko, in the last quarter of 2026.”

According to the statement, the blue line commenced passenger operation on September 4, 2023 and has so far transported over 5 million passengers.

Ojelabi said the second phase of the project is expected to be completed by the end of 2026 and passenger operations commencing in the first quarter of 2027.