The federal government loses over N3 billion in revenue over the suspension of train services on Kaduna-Abuja route.
The train services were suspended in March after terrorists attacked a Kaduna-bound train, killing and abducting many.
According to Daily Trust, checks have shown that for the past 140 days since the train service was suspended, the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has lost about N3.024bn revenue, which could have been raked from ticket sales.
The coaches, which ply the Abuja-Kaduna rail line have the capacity to carry between 900 and 1,000 passengers per trip.
About eight trips were also recorded daily between Rigasa in Kaduna and Idu in Abuja.
An average economy ticket before the suspension sold between N2, 800 and N3,000 while VIP tickets sold for N6,000.
A breakdown of daily ticket sales by Daily Trust shows that the NRC makes a minimum of N2.7m per trip at N3,000 a ticket for a train that has the capacity to carry 900 to 1,000 passengers.
Consequently, for the eight trips that the Abuja-Kaduna train does in a day, a total of about N21.6m is realised. Subsequently, this amounts to about N151.1m in seven days (one week).
As such, for the over four months that train services have been suspended, the federal government has lost nothing less than N600m monthly.
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