By Fatima Zahra Muhammad
ASHENEWS reports that the Niger state government has signed an agreement with four contractors for the procurement of 200 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) driven buses, as part of efforts to cushion the effect of the removal of fuel subsidy.
Speaking while presiding over the signing in Minna on Tuesday, the Niger state governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago recalled that the state government had promised to provide free transportation to school children while also running the buses at a discount to civil servants.
“We have made promises to Nigerlites and Nigerians are watching. We are providing free bus services to every student from basic level to tertiary.
“We are also subsidizing transport for civil servants from point to point. For these 200 buses, the first 100 will be deployed between Abuja and Suleja, 50 will work within Minna while others will be shared between local governments.”
Bago announced that the state government will procure an additional 300 CNG buses in the next year to make it 500.
“Niger state is ambitious to build its fleet of buses to 1,000 in the next four years so we are calling on investors to take the opportunity of our open CNG plan.”
Bago said that the state government was poised to revolutionize transportation in the state.
He said that the state government will revolutionize motorcycle operations in the state through the provision of electric motorcycles.
“We intend to defray these that we have and change our ecosystem. Pollution alone is a menace. In six months, we intend to achieve this,” he said.
He urged the contractors to abide strictly with the project’s guidelines and specifications.
“You gave us specifications which had been approved and we don’t want any shortfall regarding that,” he said.
On her part, the Niger State Commissioner the Transport, Hadiza Idris Kuta said that the contractors have been given 12 weeks to conclude the delivery of the buses.
“We aim to reduce the cost of transportation. With the CNG which is much cheaper than petrol, we can afford to give the buses out at a subsidized rate,” she said.
Speaking on behalf of the contractors, Mohammed Bawa said that the buses will lead to a 50 percent reduction in transportation fares.
Bawa also allayed concerns about the durability and standards of the buses.
In his words, “These buses have a two-year guarantee and the availability of spare parts is guaranteed.
“All the contractors have ensured that even if the vehicle models are changed, we’ll ensure that their spare parts are still available.”
