The average fare paid by Lagos commuters for a bus journey within the city spiked by 72.6% year-on-year in April 2021 to stand at N386.1. This is contained in the transport fare watch report, released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
According to the report, it increased from N223.71 recorded in April 2020 to an average of N386.1 in April 2021. It also represents a 2.34% increase when compared to N377.27 paid by commuters in March 2021.
States with highest bus journey fare within city were Zamfara (N620.35), Bauchi (N600.35), and Nasarawa (N500.23), while States with the lowest bus journey fare within city include Oyo (N200.07), Abia (N215.04), and Borno (N263.45).
Similarly, commuters’ average fare for bus journey intercity increased by 37.5% year-on-year from N1,779.51 recorded in April 2020 to N2,446.86.
It also increased by 1.48% month-on-month to N2,446.86 in April 2021 from N2,411.29 recorded in the previous month.
States with the highest bus journey fare intercity were Abuja FCT (N4,594.21), Lagos (N3,500.20), and Sokoto (N3,340.30).
On the other hand, States with the lowest bus journey fare intercity were Bayelsa (N1,764.55), Bauchi (N1,782.12), and Enugu (N1,800.40).
Air travel
The cost of air travel for specified routes single journey increased by 18.43% year-on-year from N30,743.65 recorded in the corresponding month of 2020 to an average of N36,409.46 in April 2021.
It however recorded a marginal decline of 0.24% from N36,495.41 in March 2021 to an average of N36,409.46.
States with the highest airfare in the review period were Anambra (N38,650), Bauchi (N38,550), and Lagos State (N38,400).
While States with the lowest airfare were Akwa-Ibom (N32,750), Sokoto (N33,500), and Enugu (N35,200).
Motorcycle
The average fare paid by commuters for a journey by motorcycle per drop surged by 86.41% year-on-year from N148.22 recorded in April 2020 to N276.3 in April 2021.
This also represents an increase of 1.79% compared to N271.44 recorded in the preceding month.
States with the highest journey fare by motorcycle per drop include Yobe (N455.02), Lagos (N435.21), and Taraba (N430.55).
While states with the lowest fare paid were Adamawa (N95.10), Katsina (N155.04), and Niger (N160.20).
Waterways
The average fare paid by passengers for waterway passenger transport increased by35.22% in April 2021 from N606.59 recorded in the corresponding month of 2020 to N820.23.
This represents a 1.47% month-on-month increase to N820.23 in April 2021 from N808.38 recorded in March 2021.
States with the highest fare by waterway passenger transport in April 2021 were Delta (N2,400.00), Bayelsa (N2,358.60), and Rivers State (N2,300.00).
On the flip side, Borno (N260.14), Gombe (N315.60), and Kebbi (N350.65) recorded the lowest fare by waterway in the review month.
The latest figure indicates that Nigerians paid significantly higher on transport costs in April 2021 compared to the corresponding period of 2020, which also reflected in the core inflation reported. Recall that core inflation climbed from 12.67% in March 2021 to 12.74% in April 2021.
