Cleaner transportation awaits Lagos as it is set to roll out 2,000 CNG buses, 231 EVs this year

… Lagos with cleaner means of journeying is realizable

Lagos residents can look forward to cleaner means of transportation within the state, as the government says it plans to roll out 2,000 compressed natural gas (CNG) buses before December, and 231 electric vehicles (EVs), by June 2024.

Oluwaseun Osiyemi, the state commissioner for transportation, who disclosed this at the commencement of the 2024 ministerial briefing in Ikeja on Tuesday, said the government was partnering with private firms under a PPP arrangement to acquire the CNG buses which would be distributed in two batches of 1,000. This, he said, would ease the burden of the petrol subsidy removal on the residents of Nigeria’s largest commercial city.

“We’re working with private operators under a PPP arrangement to launch over 2,000 CNG buses for residents to enjoy a carbon-free emission atmosphere.

“We are also looking at introducing about 231 electric vehicles on our road to complement the existing fleet of vehicles using diesel and petrol. The initiative is to deliver cheaper, safer and more climate-friendly energy to residents and Nigerians in general,” said Osiyemi.

The commissioner said Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration was currently conducting a survey to ascertain the number of commercial buses needed per route to allow for efficient and better traffic management.

He said about 856680 traffic infractions were captured by the state’s automatic number plate recognition cameras in the last one year.

“The usage of ANPR to capture other related traffic offences e.g vehicle moving against traffic. The ANPR captured 856,680 violations from January 2023 to March 2024,” the commissioner said.