Fuel scarcity in the state and other major cities has led to higher fares and longer waits for Lagos residents dependent on public transportation for work and business.
The tricycles and buses crucial for their daily commutes are scarce, as they face difficulties obtaining fuel. Many filling stations have stopped selling fuel, and those that do are charging above the normal price range.
On Monday morning, a Nairametrics observed at various bus stops and parks across Lagos State that many were crowded with people waiting for tricycles and buses for their commute.
However, these vehicles were either unavailable or insufficient to accommodate the large number of passengers.
For example, at Ojota, especially the area where people usually board tricycles and minibuses to Ikeja, there were long queues of people but scarcely any tricycles or minibuses available. This scarcity led many to start walking in the hope of finding an available and willing tricycle or bus further ahead.
After waiting more than ten minutes, the Nairametrics correspondent finally boarded a tricycle, amidst struggles from others also trying to get on. Upon asking the driver about the scarcity of tricycles and buses at Ojota, the driver explained that they were unable to find fuel for their vehicles.
He noted that only one filling station in the area was selling petrol at N700 per litre, while the others had closed their gates to willing buyers. However, he still charged the usual N200 fare to Opebi.
While the transport fare from Ojota to Opebi remained unchanged according to the Nairametrics correspondent’s experience, this was not the case in other parts of the state.
Commuters who spoke to Nairametrics disclosed that they had to pay twice their usual fare and still wait longer at parks and bus stops due to the scarcity of buses and tricycles.
Chichi, one of the Lagos commuters who spoke to Nairametrics, noted that she would normally see a bus or tricycle at her bus stop in Pencinema, Ogba, as soon as she came out of her street to head to work.
However, this Monday morning, she spent twenty minutes at her bus stop and paid N400 to Ikeja, which is a 100% increase from the usual N200 fare she paid before the fuel scarcity severely impacted the state.
Tolulope, a Lagos resident, discussed her commuting difficulties with Nairametrics, highlighting the impacts of the ongoing fuel scarcity. Normally, her journey from Iyana Oworo to Allen in Ikeja for work is quicker, but this Monday morning she said that she faced a forty-minute delay and arrived late to work.
Additionally, she incurred an extra N200 in bus fare to Allen because of the increased transportation costs stemming from the fuel scarcity.
Several respondents who spoke to Nairametrics this Monday mentioned that they paid higher fares and stated that the drivers of tricycles and buses attributed the difficulty in obtaining petrol, and the higher prices they pay, to the few filling stations that are still selling.
Nairametrics reached out to several people across the state to gauge fuel prices in their respective locations, and the responses varied significantly.
While the tricycle driver at Ojota, referenced earlier in this article, said he got fuel at N700 per litre, Charles from Iyana Oworo reported buying fuel at N1,000 per litre this Monday morning.
A respondent in Badagry disclosed that the price of fuel per litre there was N950, while another from Egbeda mentioned that some filling stations in her vicinity sold it for as much as N1,200 per litre.
Additionally, a bus driver told Nairametrics that due to difficulties in obtaining petrol from filling stations, he had to resort to the black market, paying as much as N1,500 per litre.