|
|
Article: Slow train to Abeokuta
- Article from:
- The Independent (London, England)
- Article date:
- April 23, 1994
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 1994 The Independent - London. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
|
In Nigeria, public road transport is crowded and unreliable, yet
the railway is rarely used. To a hardened Network SouthEast rail
commuter like myself, this seemed strange. Having witnessed the
daily scrummage for buses and taxis - which makes a loose maul in a
rugby match between Australia and New Zealand look like a
children's romp - and having spent hours sitting in Lagos's
interminable traffic jams, I decided to see what Nigeria Rail had
to offer.
Accompanied by my friend, Rose, and her young daughter, Bibi, I
set off one Sunday morning for Lagos station to catch the 9.15 to
Abeokuta, a large town about 60 miles to the north. After Abeokuta
the line continues to Kano in the far north, a ...