By Yemi Olakitan
Nigeria is making significant strides towards embracing sustainable and cleaner transportation. The country is committed to driving environmentally friendly alternatives and has ambitious plans for an e-Mobility Strategy, designed to position the country as a pioneer in sustainable transportation on the African continent.
The transport sector contributes 28.4% of emissions, and Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan (ETP) advocates for transitioning to low-emission transport technologies.
The federal government actively supports this transition, which includes boosting local assembly capacity for electric vehicles, establishing charging infrastructure, and enabling private sector participation.
Nigeria has launched the first phase of its sustainable transport initiative aimed at a carbon-free mobility ecosystem within the state. The initiative will see Oando Clean Energy Limited introducing electric buses to the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority’s current fleet of buses.
The company is installing charging stations at each bus depot that guarantee the buses get a full charge every day. Eco-friendly bus travel is rapidly emerging as a transformative trend in Nigeria, and it has the potential to grow rapidly in the country.
Only recently, the Federal Government of Nigeria announced its intention to implement a multifaceted strategy to expedite the adoption of sustainable and environmentally friendly transportation solutions in the country.
Saidu Alkali, the Minister of Transportation, made this declaration during his speech at the commencement of the Executive session of the 18th National Council on Transportation Conference in Abeokuta on Friday.
He stated that the conference would facilitate discussions on vital transportation issues aimed at aligning the sector with President Bola Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope Agenda.”
The minister emphasized the necessity to modernize the nation’s transportation systems by leading the way in green manufacturing and industrialization, with an emphasis on natural gas as a transitional fuel, in addition to other renewable energy sources.
Alkali highlighted the importance of emphasizing innovative technologies within the transportation sector to address energy challenges, while also underscoring the significance of promoting sustainability and fostering economic growth.
“Another transportation solution is in engendering innovative and transformative initiatives for the development of new renewable energy sources and Smart city concepts.
“Consciously prioritizing budgetary appropriation to tackle energy challenges and creating incentives to attract private sector investment in de-carbonization and other alternative technology,” he said.
Furthermore, the minister revealed that the Federal Ministry of Transportation has made significant technological advancements aimed at promoting environmentally and economically sustainable transportation solutions nationwide.
Alkali highlighted the ministry’s development of a comprehensive National Land Transport Policy, which extensively addresses components such as alternative energy and climate change considerations.
“This policy draft has reached 80% completion and we are looking forward to inviting you all to brainstorm and finalize the draft policy for onward transmission to the Federal Executive Council for approval,” he said.
Lagos State in particular is making efforts to adopt a more eco-friendly transportation system that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality. One of the initiatives is the Electric Mass Transit Buses In partnership with Oando Clean Energy Limited earlier mentioned.
Lagos State has launched the first phase of its Sustainable Transport Initiative, which involves introducing electric buses to its current fleet of buses. The initiative aims to support the transformation of the state’s public transport system through the development and deployment of a pathway to a carbon-free mobility ecosystem.
Lagos State plans to reinvigorate waterways transportation with 75 electric vessels, contributing significantly to the project’s overall impact. The project, dubbed Omi Eko, also involves the refurbishment of 25 ferry terminals and jetties.
The Federal Ministry of Transportation, in collaboration with Lagos State, also developed a National Land Transport Policy that deals extensively with components such as alternative energy and climate change. The policy draft is aimed at modernising the country’s transportation systems by pioneering the frontier of green manufacturing and industrialisation.
Nigerians must accept the dangers and inefficiency of the present transportation system. This can be achieved through an analysis of the direct and indirect/cost-benefit effects of current living style on transportation decisions.
An effective model for this paradigm shift is the principle of transportation prioritization. The principle of transportation prioritization is such that trips with higher values have lower costs while trips with lower values have higher costs. Because of this, people are discouraged from embarking on ‘unnecessary’ trips.
Furthermore, smart transportation choices should be embraced above inefficient choices; walking, cycling, and sailing are better choices than driving, especially for short distances. As these choices are better for the health, they are also more sustainable transport means.
The Federal, State, and Local Governments need to give more attention to sustainable transport options in their various infrastructural plans. The creation of special cycling and pedestrian walking routes would also encourage more efficient means of transport, especially in new infrastructural designs. The cost of not having a sustainable transport system is higher than the cost of putting it in place.
In addition, there should be strict enforcement of the 2011 Federal Government’s National Environmental (Control of vehicular emissions from petrol and diesel engines) Regulations, which bans the importation of non-fuel efficient vehicles and ones without approved emissions reduction technology.
More importantly, the nation should give more attention to the development and access to more sustainable means of public transport such as trains; which transport a larger number of commuters and reduces road congestion and water transport; which encourages more international trade that can improve the country’s economy. Investments in smart electric and solar cars are another potential sustainable means of transportation for Nigeria as is done in developed worlds.
Nevertheless, some progress has been made so far in developing the transportation sector in Nigeria. The new face of Lagos (Oshodi Transport Interchange) project to improve intra and inter-state transport, the Calabar rail project, 4th Mainland Bridge, Airport expansion in Jos, 2nd Niger Bridge, and the five rail line projects and several aviation projects that the 2016 budget makes provision for. Yet, ensuring that all transportation projects are sustainable is the key to overall success.
Attaining sustainable transport is the responsibility of every level of government. Notwithstanding a country’s national actions, the place of community and grassroots involvement cannot be side-lined.
Every level of government and community leadership should take responsibility to ensure that every means of transportation in their immediate community is economically friendly, socially acceptable and environmentally safe.
As transportation investment cannot be solely carried out by the public sector, research is needed to justify and increase the interest of the private sector in investing in sustainable transport systems.
There is a need to know the practical approaches to developing national and local level sustainable transport infrastructure plans, models of private sector investment that work, reconciling the availability of private sector finance and worthwhile sustainable transport infrastructure projects, thus, setting out an approach for enhanced project preparation facilities.