In fact, Bello declared that residents should get ready to ride on the FCT light rail last Christmas as work on the project had reached 98 percent completion.
Another leg of his ye-to-be fulfilled promise was that air travellers would now have a choice, either to board cabs on arrival or departure or ride on trains from the airport train station to the Central Business District Central Station.
A source claimed the trial coaches for a test-run of the Abuja Light rail project have been delivered and will be inspected by the Minister “anytime from now.”
However, it was observed that construction work on most of the railway stations are on-going though the railway tracks are in place.
While swearing-in Mandate Secretaries (equivalent of State Commissioners) and Coordinators of Abuja Metropolitan Management Council and Satellite Town Development Department last Sepember, Bello said he met the project packages of Abuja light rail projects, at stages of completion below 70 and 50 percent respectively, adding that he drove the projects to 98 percent completion. He announced that residents should expect to ride on these trains by Christmas this year.
Malam Bello pointed to the significant works that have been done in the three major access ways into the City namely; the Outer Northern and Inner Southern Express Ways as well as the major arterials into the heart of the City, also known as the Constitution and Independence Ways. Some of these, he added, are ready for use by the public while major finishing touches were going on.
However, he said while these are being awaited, the test-run coaches would be rolling with passengers.
He said when the rail service begins full scale operation, between 120,000 and 200,000 passengers would be conveyed daily in the 20 coaches.
The contract for the light rail project is undertaken by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) at a cost put at $823 million (about N299 billion).
The total length of the double track rail project segmented into three Lots is 45.245 kilometres.