As of 2003, Nigeria’s rail system had 3,557 kilometers of track, 19 kilometers of which were dual gauge and the remainder, standard gauge. The country has two major rail lines: one connects Lagos on the Bight of Benin and Nguru in the northern state of Yobe; the other connects Port Harcourt in the Niger Delta and Maiduguri in the northeastern state of Borno. As of March 2006, Nigeria and Niger expected to move forward with plans to establish a rail link between the two countries. Nigeria is also seeking a rail link with Cameroon, but discussions are more contentious in the aftermath of the International Court of Justice’s October 2002 verdict in favor of Cameroon on the issue of control of the Bakasi Peninsula. In order to remedy the poor condition, efficiency, and profitability of the nation’s railways, the government is seeking to privatize the Nigerian Railway Corporation. Under the privatization plan, three separate concessions of 25–30 years would be granted to private-sector companies to run train services in the western, central, and eastern regions.
total: 3,557 km
narrow gauge:
3,505 km 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) gauge
19 km 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) gauge convertible to 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
standard gauge: 329 km 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) gauge
note: Years of neglect of both the rolling stock and the right-of-way have seriously reduced the capacity and utility of the system. A project to restore Nigeria's railways is now underway. A project to convert the gauge of the system to 1435 mm has also somewhat stalled. Couplings of the chopper kind, vacuum brakes and non-roller bearing plain axles are also obsolete.
Main article: Lagos Metro
There are no rail links to neighbouring countries.Timeline
2010
2008
2007
- 21 July 2007 YENEGOA-PORT HARCOURT LINE - According to the Daily Champion (published in Lagos), the Nigerian states Bayelsa and Rivers are to embark on the construction of a high-speed rail line to connect Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital, and Port Harcourt. The Governor Timipre Sylva made this announcement when he met Nigerian Agip Oil Company managing director Antonio Panza in Yenagoa recently.
- February 2007 - Inland Container Depot under construction at Jos.
2006
- CONTRACT TO REBUILD LAGOS TO KANO RAILWAY LINE
President Olusegun Obasanjo signed a contract with China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation to modernise the Lagos to Kano railway line. This is the first phase of the proposed 3 phase line upgrade. The project has been split up into 5 sections namely Lagos-Ibadan (181 km), Ibadan-Ilorin (200 km), Ilorin-Minna (270 km), Minna–Abuja–Kaduna (360 km), and Kaduna-Kano (305 km).
- CHINA HELPS WITH REVOLUTIONARY "FAST" RAIL
According to the minister of commerce, $US2billion has been made available to start the projects, and the Chinese company will also invest in the three planned stages of the projected Abuja light rail system.
