Eid-el-fitr: Commercial Vehicle Operators Decry Low Passenger Turnout Despite Maintaining Last Year's Fares

Israel Adeleke, Damilare Adebesin 

Although it has been an age-long tradition for Nigerians to travel in their droves during festive seasons such as Eid-el-fitr, OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA (OTN) News reports as gathered that some commercial vehicle operators in Ibadan and Abeokuta have lamented the low turnout of passengers travelling for the Eid-el-Fitr celebration and holidays in both states, linking the situation to structural adjustments of people to current harsh socio-economic realities in the country. 

OTN News further reports that the drivers who lamented this in separate interviews with journalists in Ibadan and Abeokuta on Saturday, said that there had been no significant surge in passenger traffic at the motor parks this year.

The respondents who spoke at the Ojoo, Iwo Road and Sango motor parks in Sango as well as at Kuto, Lafenwa and Ita Oshin in Abeokuta respectively, noted that the situation differed from the rate at which commuters travelled during the 2025 New Year celebration.

However, the story was slightly different at Panseke motor park where many passengers, mainly students of the state-owned Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta who were returning home to their parents boosted the human traffic as confirmed by one of the park officials. 

OTN News observes that there was a slight upward review of transport fares to the lesser cities, while the fares to Lagos and other major cities did not change.

Speaking, an official of the Park Management System (PMS) at Iwo Road Bus Terminal, Azeez Abdullah, said that many were forced to celebrate in their base due to the nation’s economic realities.

Mr Abdullah added that the situation in the country contributed to the low turnout of commuters across all routes.

He however, added that the transport fare from the park to Lagos remained the same, between N3,500 and N4,500, depending on the destination park in Lagos.

“Transport fare to Ilesa, Ondo and Ado-Ekiti stays at N4,500, N5,000 and N7,000 respectively; we cannot increase the fare now because passengers are not rushing,” he said.

Echoing his voice, a driver at Ojoo Bus Terminal, who chose to be anonymous, reiterated that passengers were not travelling as expected, thus forcing commercial motorists to maintain the transport fare.

He, however, noted that passengers might pay a little higher while returning to their base after the Eid-el-Fitr celebration.

According to him, this will be due to the usual rush to catch up with the official resumption date for civil servants and other workers who must resume work.

Testifying to the low turn out, a passenger at the Sango Motor Park, Abeeb Adeleye, said that he had stayed for hours waiting for a bus to Saki to be filled up.

He confirmed that there had been no significant increase in the transport fare due to the low turnout of passengers.