Edo State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, has announced that the state government has placed orders for new Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses to bolster its fleet for the state’s free transport scheme.
The governor made this announcement in his Independence Day speech, highlighting that his administration is taking critical steps within the limits of the resources available to it.
He added that the state is initiating and implementing policies and programmes aimed at responding to the recent fuel subsidy removal policy by the federal government.
According to him, “We have introduced a free transport service for passengers on all routes operated by the state-owned Edo City Transport Service (ECTS), among many support programmes that the state government has put in place to reduce the challenge, sufferings, and exorbitant cost of living faced by Edo people.
“We are pleased with the salutary impact of this initiative, which covers 13 intra-city routes and several intercity routes daily, covering towns and villages within the state’s three senatorial districts.
Over three hundred thousand residents have benefited from the scheme in the first two weeks of the palliative programme, and we expect over 1,500,000 residents to benefit in the initial two months of the free transport initiative.
“We have placed new orders for additional CNG-run buses to increase the fleet.”
Regarding other measures being adopted to alleviate the effects of the hardship caused by high transport fares, he added:
“We also launched a 24-hour free Wi-Fi service in various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) and other public places in the state to provide unlimited internet access to workers and other residents, enabling them to work effectively and efficiently from selected public spaces.”