Lagos Rail Mass Transit is a

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

system in

Lagos State Lagos State (, ) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West, Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, Nigerian states, Lagos is the second List of Nigerian states by population, most populous state but the List of Nigerian states by area, smallest ...

. The rail system is managed by the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority ( LAMATA). The railway equipment including electric power, signals, rolling stock, and fare collection equipment will be provided by the private sector under a concession contract. LAMATA is responsible for policy direction, regulation, and infrastructure for the network. The first section of the network, Phase I of the Blue Line, was originally planned to be completed in 2011, though the construction has suffered many delays caused by shortage of funds and change of government. The Blue Line opened on September 4, 2023 and the Red Line opened on October 15, 2024.

Timeline

* 2008: A metro is proposed for

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

, with a completion date of 2011. * 2009: Work commenced for construction of the Blue Line rail infrastructure, awarded to

China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation Ltd. (abbreviation CCECC) was established in June 1979 under the approval of the State Council of the People's Republic of China. CCECC developed from the earlier Foreign Aid Department of the Min ...

(CCECC) as a design and build contract. * 2016: Phase I (the Blue Line from Marina to Mile 2) planned to open in December 2016. * 2018: After an

Alstom Alstom SA () is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer which operates worldwide in rail transport markets. It is active in the fields of passenger transportation, signaling, and locomotives, producing high-speed, suburban, regional ...

review of the project, Phase I (the Blue Line from Marina to Mile 2) is now set to open in 2021. * 2021: CCECC commences construction on the Red Line. * January 2022: LAMATA purchases two Talgo VIII trains. * On January 24, 2023, President

Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023. A retired Nigerian army major general, he was the military head of state of Nigeria from 31 December 1983 to 27 Augu ...

inaugurated the first phase of the Lagos Mass Transit Blue Line Rail Project. * On September 4, 2023, Governor

Babajide Sanwo-Olu Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu (born 25 June 1965) is a Nigerian politician who has served as the governor of Lagos State since 2019. Sanwo-Olu became governor under the platform of the All Progressives Congress after winning the APC gubernatoria ...

officially opened the Blue Line transit for public use. * At the beginning of 2024, it was announced that the Lagos suburban railway had transported 583,000 passengers in its first four months. This would make it the largest inner-city rail service provider in Africa. * On February 14, 2024, Governor Sanwo-Olu announced that the Red Line between Agbado and Oyingbo would be inaugurated on February 29, 2024, in the presence of Nigerian President Tinubu. * On October 15, 2024, the first section of the Red Line opens to the public. * April 2025: Work commenced for construction of the Green Line rail infrastructure, awarded to

China Harbour Engineering Company China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) is an engineering contractor and a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), providing infrastructure construction, such as marine engineering, dredging and reclamation, road a ...

(CHEC) and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) as a design and build contract.

History

The idea of developing a rapid transit in

Lagos state Lagos State (, ) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West, Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, Nigerian states, Lagos is the second List of Nigerian states by population, most populous state but the List of Nigerian states by area, smallest ...

dates back to 1983 with the Lagos Metroline network conceived by Alhaji

Lateef Jakande Lateef Kayode Jakande (; 23 July 1929 – 11 February 2021) was a Nigerian journalist and politician who served as governor of Lagos State from 1979 to 1983, and later Minister of Works under the Sani Abacha military regime. Background Lateef ...

during the

Second Nigerian Republic The Second Nigerian Republic was a brief formation of the Nigerian state which succeeded the military governments formed after the overthrow of the first republic. Background Contested elections and political turbulence in the Western region ...

. The initial Metroline project was scrapped in 1985 by

at a loss of over $78 million to the state tax payers. In 2003, the then-governor

Bola Tinubu Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Adekunle Tinubu (born 29 March 1952) is a Nigerian politician serving as the 16th and current president of Nigeria since 2023. He previously served as the governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007, and senator for Lagos ...

revived the rail network for Lagos State with a formal announcement of its construction. The initial cost $135 million was proposed for the greater Lagos Urban Transportation Project to be implemented by the newly formed LAMATA. LAMATA initially concentrated on developing a Bus Rapid Transit system, running from Mile 2 to Lagos Island. In 2008, LAMATA began focusing on the Blue Line and the Red Line.

Rolling stock

In September 2011, LAMATA announced that it would acquire some H5-series subway trains formerly used by the

Toronto Transit Commission The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the primary public transport agency in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, operating the majority of the city's transit bus, bus and rail services. It is the oldest and largest of the urban transit service providers ...

(TTC) for the Blue Line. The cars were to be refurbished in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and converted to

standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the ...

before being imported and put into service on the

Blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...

and

Red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

lines. The same contract also included an option for some H6-series subway cars from the TTC, however this has since been cancelled. In January 2015, LAMATA opted for Chinese-built trains instead, ordering 15 electro-diesel multiple units from

CRRC Dalian CRRC Dalian Co., Ltd. (), often abbreviated as DLoco, is a company located in Dalian, Liaoning Province, China, producing railway locomotives, multiple units and diesel engines. The factory was established in 1899 during the period of constructio ...

with an option for 14 more. About 76 H5 cars that had been taken for refurbishment to

Buffalo Buffalo most commonly refers to: * True buffalo or Bubalina, a subtribe of wild cattle, including most "Old World" buffalo, such as water buffalo * Bison, a genus of wild cattle, including the American buffalo * Buffalo, New York, a city in the n ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, have been scrapped by August 2015. Pendular

In August 2018, LAMATA signed an agreement with

. As a part of the agreement,

conducted a review of the rail lines, and electrification of a portion of the track was planned. In January 2022, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu visited the US state of

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, to purchase two Talgo VIII trainsets for service on the Red Line. They had been ordered by

for use on the

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

Hiawatha Hiawatha ( , also : ), also known as Ayenwatha or Aiionwatha, was a precolonial Native American leader and cofounder of the Iroquois Confederacy. He was a leader of the Onondaga people, the Mohawk people, or both. According to some accounts, he ...

'' in 2009, but they were never placed in service, and were instead stored. Talgo VIII cars are based on the unique technology of the Talgo ''Pendular'' model, which (similar to a bicycle rider) ''leans into a curve'' resulting in less sideways force and a higher comfort for passengers when driving over a curvy track. The "leaning" of the car is ''passive'' i.e. it happens purely by the resulting force, without electronics, sensors or engines. In 2023, LAMATA bought 11 Class 43 locomotives and 11

Mark 3 Mark 3 is the third chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It relates a conflict over healing on the Sabbath, the commissioning of the Twelve Apostles, a conflict with the Jerusalem scribes and a meeting of ...

coaches from the UK. Some of the class 43s will be used to haul rakes of the mark 3 coaches, while others will be used to haul the Talgo rakes.

Routes

Blue Line: Okokomaiko - Marina

The Blue Line is the first line in the system and opened its first five stations on 4 September 2023. The entire planned route is from

Okokomaiko Okokomaiko is an area in the town of Ojo, located in Lagos State, southwest Nigeria, along the Lagos- Badagry Expressway. The Lagos State government, under the leadership of the former governor Akinwunmi Ambode stretched the importance of this ro ...

Lagos Marina Lagos Island () is the principal and central Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos, Nigeria. It was the capital of Lagos State until 1957. It is part of the Lagos Division. As of the preliminary 2006 Nigerian census, the LGA had a population of 2 ...

. Construction had been delayed due to lack of funds and was split into multiple phases.

Red Line: Agbado - Marina

The second line, the Red Line, runs from Marina to Agbado. The line shares the

right-of-way A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access h ...

with the

Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway The Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway is a -long standard gauge railway under construction in Nigeria. Once complete, the railway will connect the Atlantic Ocean port city of Lagos to Kano, near the border with Niger, passing through the na ...

. Like the Blue Line, construction of the Red Line has been split into multiple phases. Once all sections are completed, the line will reach a length of 37 km. Like the Blue Line, this line is being constructed by

CCECC China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation Ltd. (abbreviation CCECC) was established in June 1979 under the approval of the State Council of the People's Republic of China. CCECC developed from the earlier Foreign Aid Department of the Min ...

. In September 2023, Governor Sanwo-Olu assured residents that the first phase of the line was 95% complete and would be finished by the end of the year. A ceremonial inauguration was held in February 2024, but regular passenger service from Agbado to Oyingbo started only on October 15, 2024. This first phase is 27 km in length and has 8 stations. Construction of the second phase, which will extend the line to Marina Station and connect it to the Blue Line, is currently ongoing.

Airport branch

The Airport Branch of the Red Line is intended to run from Ikeja to MMIA International Terminal.

Green Line: Marina - Lekki Free Trade Zone (Airport) (Planned)

The planned third line, the Green Line, will run 68 km from Marina to the

Lekki Free Trade Zone Lekki is a city in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is located to the south-east of Lagos city. Lekki is a naturally formed peninsula, adjoining to its west Victoria Island and Ikoyi districts of Lagos, with the Atlantic Ocean to its south, Lagos Lag ...

, with a connection to the Blue Line at Marina. It will serve key areas, including

Victoria Island Victoria Island () is a large island in the Arctic Archipelago that straddles the boundary between Nunavut and the Northwest Territories of Canada. It is the eighth-largest island in the world, and at in area, it is Canada's second-largest i ...

, Lekki and Ajah. On September 6, 2024, the Lagos state government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with

(CHEC) and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) to initiate construction, with the two companies leading on design, financing, and operation of the Green Line. On April 10, 2025, the state government unveiled the full plan for the Green Line, with an expected initial ridership of 500,000, as well as intent to complete the line in one phase.

Other planned routes

* Purple Line:

Redemption Camp The Redemption City of God formerly known as Redemption Camp is the camp ground and international headquarters of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), a Pentecostal Evangelical mega church in Mowe, Ogun State of Nigeria. It has the geogr ...

to Ojo * Yellow Line:

Ota, Ogun Ota (alternatively spelled Otta) is a town in Ogun State, Nigeria with an estimated 163,783 residents. Ota is the capital of the Ado-Odo/Ota, Ado–Odo/Ota Local Government Area. The traditional leader of Ota is the Olota of Ota, Oba Adeyemi Abd ...

to National Theatre * Orange Line:

Ikeja Ikeja is the List of capitals of states of Nigeria, capital city of Lagos State in southwestern Nigeria. Its population, as of the 2006 census, is 313,196. Prior to the emergence of military rule in the early 1980s, Ikeja was a well planned, cl ...

Agbowa-Ikosi Agbowa-Ikosi is an ancient town in the Nigerian state of Lagos. On it lies the second biggest asphalt concrete road in Nigeria. History Agbowa-Ikosi started from a place known today as Egunbesawo. The town is divided into several districts (''I ...

References

External links

Subways.net
Lagos Rail Mass Transit

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lagos Rail Mass Transit Rapid transit in Nigeria Public transport in Lagos Transport infrastructure under construction in Nigeria Projects established in 1983 Rail infrastructure in Lagos Standard-gauge railways in Nigeria 2023 in rail transport