The Federal Government has poured significant resources into promoting Compressed Natural Gas as a cheaper transport fuel, promising better living conditions for Nigerians. Yet, transport costs remain high nationwide. In this report, OLASUNKANMI AKINLOTAN examines the key factors driving the persistent rise in fares, as highlighted by industry stakeholders

In Nigeria, a convergence of economic challenges, including the removal of fuel subsidies, soaring inflation, and the devaluation of the naira, among other man-made causes, has led to a sharp and sustained rise in transportation costs nationwide. This surge is placing a heavy burden on commuters and households and, in turn, deepening economic hardship and prompting a significant deterioration in living standards.

Particularly, the impact of transportation on food prices has, in no small measure, affected the standard of living for Nigerians.

Successive government administrations at the centre have taken turns attempting to stem the tide of skyrocketing living costs in different ways, but Nigerians have continued to wallow in abject poverty. The World Bank said the poverty rate among Nigeria’s rural population has reached an alarming 75.5 per cent, highlighting deepening inequality and widespread economic hardship across the country.

According to the World Bank’s latest April 2025 Poverty and Equity Brief for Nigeria, rural dwellers are overwhelmingly bearing the brunt of economic stagnation, inflation, and structural challenges that have characterised the country’s growth trajectory in recent years.

The data, derived from Nigeria’s most recent nationally representative surveys, show that while 41.3 per cent of the urban population lives below the poverty line, the figure for rural Nigeria is almost double.

Different leaders have adopted different approaches while in power. When President Bola Tinubu ascended to power, he identified the continuous payment of fuel subsidies as anti-economy and immediately suspended it, leaving marketers to sell at competitive prices.

Before now, the Nigerian government had, for decades, subsidised fuel and fixed retail prices of petroleum products. The payments have, however, threatened the nation’s fiscal position and impacted the government’s ability to fund developmental projects across the nation.

In November 2021, the federal government announced plans to remove the fuel subsidy and replace it with a monthly N5,000 transport grant for poor Nigerians.

However, the government later suspended the plan after the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress threatened to embark on mass protests.

In 2023, Tinubu finally suspended the fuel subsidy in his inaugural speech and later proposed the use of Compressed Natural Gas as an alternative for Nigerians.

In August 2024, while inaugurating 30 hybrid-powered Compressed Natural Gas buses donated by the Depots and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria at the State House in Abuja, Tinubu emphasised the urgent need for Nigeria to utilise its vast natural gas resources in the transportation sector.

The President stated that CNG transportation is an economic necessity for Nigeria, signalling a significant shift in the country’s approach to public transportation and energy use.

“Utilising natural gas to power Nigeria’s transportation industry is the next way to go,” he stated.

Tinubu also highlighted CNG as a solution to the recent challenges of high transportation costs faced by many Nigerians.

However, in December 2024, the Minister of Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said the Federal Government had so far invested $450m in Compressed Natural Gas.

Early in 2025, the government announced plans to attract $1bn in annual investments in Nigeria’s Compressed Natural Gas conversion projects.

The Programme Director of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, Michael Oluwagbemi, made this known during the launch of a CNG Conversion Centre at commercial parks in Mile 2, Lagos, in collaboration with the National Union of Road Transport Workers.

He disclosed that in the last one year, over $500m had already been invested in the CNG space.

After a series of appeals and investments in CNG infrastructure across Nigeria, citizens started keying into the government’s initiative as both private and mainly commercial vehicles began converting to CNG.

Drivers reveal reason for sustained hiked prices despite CNG

While private vehicles mostly build their tanks in the car boot, commercial vehicles’ tanks are mostly conspicuously seen under passengers’ seats. While some are yet to convert, many commercial transporters have started using CNG.

Meanwhile, passengers told our correspondent that the solution was yet to translate into reduced transport fares because transport unions, associations backed by state governments, take what could have been gains for transporters.

Findings have shown that transport unions are not alone, as policemen as well as officers of the Federal Road Safety Corps have also been contributing to travellers’ pains.

Some commercial drivers in Oyo, Lagos, and Ogun states told The PUNCH that fares could have been less than half if the burden of transport union tickets, police, and FRSC extortions were addressed.

Drivers who bemoaned the situation stressed that transport union leaders and their postmen and enforcers are living in affluence far beyond what drivers could afford.

Our correspondent observed policemen collecting money from motorists, especially on major expressways.

In Ogun State, there are seven transport unions collecting levies from motorcyclists and tricyclists. These unions include the National Union of Road Transport Workers, the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, and the Ogun State Parks and Garages Manageme

Others are the Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association of Nigeria and the Articulated Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association of Nigeria.

In Lagos, there are mainly two major unions collecting the controversial levies from transporters.

In Oyo State, there are three major unions: the Park Management System, the Motorcycle Transport Union of Nigeria, and the Amalgamated Commercial Tricycle and Motorcycle Owners, Repairs and Riders Association of Nigeria, among others.

However, despite the presence of CNG, according to the National Bureau of Statistics Transport Fare Watch for April 2024, the average fare paid by commuters for intercity bus journeys in Nigeria surged to N7,122.57 in April 2024 from N3,994.51 in April 2023.

The report also noted a minor decrease of 0.43 per cent month-on-month, with the average fare dropping from N7,152.97 in March 2024.

“The average fare paid by commuters for bus journey intercity per drop was N7,122.57 in April 2024, indicating a decline of 0.43 per cent on a month-on-month basis compared to N7,152.97 in March 2024.

“On a year-on-year basis, the fare rose by 78.31 per cent from N3,994.51 in April 2023,” the report read in part.

Moreover, the report disclosed that Anambra State recorded the highest average fare for intercity bus travel, standing at N9,600 per trip.

Abia and Gombe states trailed closely, jointly occupying the second position with an average fare of N8,300 per trip, while Akwa Ibom State secured the third spot with N8,250 per trip.

Conversely, Kwara State recorded the lowest average fare for intercity bus trips in April 2024, with travellers paying N5,500 per trip.

Ebonyi State followed with an average fare of N5,600 per trip, while Taraba State ranked third among states with the lowest fares at N6,100 per trip.

Background

Giving a background to how the union came into being, 72-year-old Apostle Erastus Aladesuru, the founder of People of Praise International Ministry, located in Ikotun Egbe, and a former National Union of Road Transport Workers chairman in Kwara State in the 80s, explained that road union was set up to defend the collective interests of the motor transporters during the colonial era.

According to Aladesuru, in the 1930s, the transport union fought and successfully resisted attempts by the colonial government to impose higher duties on vehicles in areas where road transport was competing with the railway.

He explained that NURTW, which is the largest transport union in the country, was founded in 1978.

Aladesuru said that to manage the affairs of the union, the road transport workers set up an administrative structure, with secretariats established in units, branches, zones and states.

Each of these has secretaries and elected officers, who are headed by chairmen, to coordinate the activities of the transport union throughout the federation, FCT included.

“Even though the union consists of people of integrity, probity and sound intellectual reasoning, there is this misconception held by the public against its members, who perceive them as school dropouts, irresponsible, lazy and a bunch of miscreants. Unfortunately, this label was brought upon them by the unguided attitude of quite a number of them,” he stated.

But the mandate for the union seems to have changed as drivers say they don’t benefit from the union but only pay to them on a daily basis.

Levis on drivers spark high fares

Chibuzor Ugo in Oshodi, Lagos, who was visibly angry with the state of things, explained that mid-last year, drivers were paying N800 for each passenger going to the east to the transport unions, but the levy had jumped to N2,000 per passenger.

The PUNCH also gathered that from Berger to Ikeja in Lagos, minibuses now charge N700 as fares and pay N1000 tagged loading fee to union members on every trip, with another N700 as ticket fee daily.

Also a six passenger wagon car between Oshodi to Abeokuta takes N4000 from per passenger but pays N7,500 to the union as loading fee but pays N6000 to unions in Abeokuta.

Chibuzor Ugo said during the Yuletide travellers going to Onitsha, Owerri and Aba now pay between N16,000 and N19,000 for long buses instead of N12,000-N14,500; while the 18-seater buses were charged N25,000 compared to N19,500 before now.

He also added that some passengers who were willing to stand throughout the journey were asked to pay N15,000, adding that during the festive period, fares to the east could be as high as N30,000-N35,000.

Chibuzor Ugo in Oshodi, Lagos, who was visibly angry with the state of things, explained that mid-last year, drivers were paying N800 for each passenger going to the east to the transport unions, but the levy had jumped to N2,000 per passenger.

Ugo said travellers going to Onitsha, Owerri and Aba now pay between N16,000 and N19,000 for long buses instead of N12,000-N14,500; while the 18-seater buses were charged N25,000 compared to N19,500 before now.

He also added that some passengers who were willing to stand throughout the journey were asked to pay N15,000, adding that during the festive period, fares to the east could be as high as N30,000-N35,000.

Also, the fare from Abeokuta to Sagamu, which was initially N400, has risen to N1,500.

Also, The PUNCH gathered that Abeokuta to Oshodi which used to cost 2,500 for a seven passenger car now costs N4,000.

Safety concerns

In September, Federal Road Safety Corps says its officers have apprehended more than 250 commercial vehicle drivers in the Federal Capital Territory for violating a directive that mandates only one passenger in the front seat of taxis.

The FCT Sector Commander, Corps Commander Felix Theman, said 250 drivers of commercial vehicles were arrested within only two days of enforcement against overloading within the Federal Capital Territory

The FRSC said the measure was aimed at curbing overloading in commercial transport and restoring compliance with vehicle safety standards.

“One of my key priorities upon assumption of office was the restoration of passenger dignity and safety through strict adherence to road safety laws. Enforcement is the most civil and effective means to ensure that safety is not compromised for convenience.

“In the first two days of the operation, over 250 commercial vehicles and drivers were apprehended for violating the directive mandating only one passenger in the front seat of taxis in accordance with vehicle design specifications,” Theman stated.

Drivers’ reaction

Expressing their anger to our correspondent, the commercial drivers stressed that the money paid was not contributing anything to them as drivers, but the unions have continued to forcefully take money from them because they have continually secured state backing to act.

The drivers said the unions should better be called government revenue collectors, as that has been their activity over the years.

Recounting his unforgettable day with the union’s representative, a driver who identified himself as Baba Amina at Ketu Motor Park in Lagos said whoever refused to pay the union would either be ordered out of the park or beaten up by those he described as “strong boys.”

He explained how he landed in a hospital after he confronted the authority of the union at the park in 2022.

Baba Amina said he had engaged in a scuffle with his wife before leaving home that same day. On getting to the park, the union representatives had asked for loading and ticket fees as usual, but he refused in anger.

“The next thing was a slap on my cheek from behind. I engaged them in a fight, but they reinforced and beat me up. I opened my eyes in a hospital, and since then, I have vowed never to fight them over payment again. After all, the fees are always pushed to passengers. But most times it is annoying to me to see myself handing over my sweat to a union member out of fear.

“The government can’t claim ignorance of the fact that the union members are the real reason transport fares have refused to be reduced. First, they pay a fraction to the government and live in affluence with the rest of the money just because they are government boys. This is shared slavery.”

Also, Babalola Aina at Oshodi Terminal Two told our correspondent that a space wagon car driver pays N7,500 per trip from Oshodi to Abeokuta, while the union in Ogun also takes N6,000 per trip, leaving passengers to pay N4,000 instead of N2,500.

He also decried the attitude of giving preferential treatment to vehicles owned by union executives, ensuring that they load their vehicles immediately upon arrival at the park, unlike others who queue orderly.

He lamented that the union, which practically renders no service to them, lives in affluence without engaging in any other definite job or trade.

He said, “The union is just a place where strong boys are bred to oppress erring drivers. They don’t render any support to us. Look at me and look at them; they are finer and look more presentable, but I am the one working while they are the ones eating my sweat. Although spare parts are also on the high side, just imagine that if we pay half of what we pay to the union, transport from here to Abeokuta in my six-seater car should be N2,500 or at most N3,000. Especially here in Oshodi, they make us carry three persons on a seat where two passengers should sit just to take N7,500 from us instead of N6,000, just like they take from us while coming from Abeokuta.”

Unions speak

President of the Road Transport Employees Association of Nigeria, Muhammadu Musa said that contrary to popular claims, commercial drivers do reduce their fares when using CNG, adding that the problem is that only about 10 per cent of commercial drivers use CNG.

He also said that RTEAN has conceived the idea of importing LPG vehicles but lamented that the country is in need of investors for the transport sector.

In his words, “The truth is that the number of commercial vehicles that currently use CNG is not up to 10 per cent. We are reducing prices anyway. For instance, I know how much other vehicles charge passengers from Lagos to Kano, and I know how much I charge for the same route from Lagos to Abuja. The problem is that those using CNG are not many.

“The drivers you spoke with are not telling the truth. I just returned from China recently, and I saw vehicles using LPG. What we need is for the government and investors to join hands with us so we can bring in LPG vehicles. LPG serves more than CNG. If we can bring in LPG vehicles, fares will go down honestly. In Kano, there are about five hectares of land where you will find the RTEAN banner and that of the Pi-CNG initiative. Even as I speak with you, we are working toward it, pressing the government to achieve more, and we are also receiving government support gradually. For instance, the President has said that the importation of CNG vehicles will only attract 50 per cent of the duty payable.”

Lamenting the scanty number of CNG vehicles in use, transport union boss stressed, “They gave us some CNG vehicles, and we have also converted some commercial vehicles to CNG. Aside from Benin, I am the first person to start using CNG. We have it in very few states in the country. Even in the states where we have it, there are not many yet. But the government is trying. As I speak, they are trying seriously to ensure that more places where CNG can be sold are secured.”

He also hailed the Federal Government’s move toward cleaner and more cost-effective CNG. While appealing for greater investment, the union boss emphasised the need for a transport bank.

“They are in talks with some already existing filling stations to also ensure that they sell CNG. That way, many more people will convert to CNG, and it will be better for us. The present government is trying honestly. If the former government had started in this direction, what the present government would be doing would just be consolidation, and the CNG journey would have moved farther than this.

“If we had been getting something like this before now, things would have gotten better. Transport needs huge investment. Just as there is a Bank of Industry and a Bank of Agriculture, there is no Bank of Transporters, and we need one. We cannot afford the high interest rates commercial banks request,” he added.

FCCPC angry

In December 2026, dissatisfied by the skyrocketing transport fares, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission warned inter-city road transport operators against arbitrary and unexplained increases in transport fares during the ongoing yuletide travel season, following a surge in consumer complaints across several parts of the country.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, acknowledged that seasonal demand, operational pressures and other legitimate cost factors could influence transport pricing.

Usually, during end-of-year celebrations, transport prices across the board are increased due to the rush, particularly hinging on fuel prices, among other factors.

The FCCPC noted that the complaints are emerging at a time when there are reports of reductions in the pump price of premium motor spirit in some parts of the country. While fuel cost is only one of several factors that may affect transport fares, the Commission said fare increases that are not properly explained or disclosed raise valid consumer protection concerns.

Commenting on the development, the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, Tunji Bello, said the FCCPC is closely monitoring market conduct throughout the festive period and has intensified engagement with transport unions, park managers and operators nationwide.

He clarified that price increases are not, in themselves, unlawful, but warned that conduct which exploits consumers or takes unfair advantage of heightened seasonal demand may attract regulatory attention under the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018.

The FCCPC boss further noted that practices such as inadequate fare disclosure, coercive conduct or coordinated pricing arrangements among operators to the detriment of consumers would be subjected to strict regulatory scrutiny.

Bello threatened that where violations are established, offenders would face stiff penalties in line with the law. (PUNCH)