Lagos-Ibadan rail to install Online booking, baggage scanners to be installed soon for upgrade
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Baggage scanners will soon be installed and online ticket booking adopted in the Lagos-Ibadan rail service, Nigeria Union of Railway Workers (NURW) President General Innocent Ajiji has assured.
He disclosed the management of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) has made plans for online ticket bookings and baggage scanners but he is not sure if there will be room for point of sale (POS) service.
Ajiji said adverts have been placed for companies interested in managing online bookings to apply and some have shown interest.
“On the Abuja rail service, tickets are sold online, so one doesn’t need to go to the train stations before buying tickets, but that of Lagos-Ibadan is a work in progress.
“One of the reasons for the delay is because the Lagos-Ibadan rail was barely opened a few months back and the attack on the Abuja-Kaduna service also contributed to the delay in the installation of these gadgets.
“Adverts have been placed for interested companies to apply.”
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Online booking easier, safer
If online bookings start before the end of the year, there would be no need for POS, as the online purchase of tickets would be a lot easier and safer, while passengers who could not buy online would do so at the ticketing booth,” Ajiji told The PUNCH.
Ajiji disclosed baggage scanners have been acquired but are yet to be installed.
“The reduction of daily trips as a result of diesel price hike and the Abuja-Kaduna train attack have also contributed to the delay of some of these work processes by the government.
“If not for the interruption we had with the Abuja-Kaduna train attack, we would have gone far with these processes at the Lagos-Ibadan rail.”
An assistant station manager, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, added that “it is the management’s decision not to use POS but the online booking monitor has been installed.”