ABUJA, Nigeria — President Bola Tinubu directed all 36 Nigerian states to accelerate the implementation of the National Affordable Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Transit Programme to ensure commuters across the nation see reductions in public transport fares starting October 1, 2026.
In a signed statement released on Saturday, September 19, 2026, President Bola Tinubu stated that the directive follows an August 27, 2026 meeting with state governors. Okay News reports that President Bola Tinubu established an implementation committee for the CNG initiative under the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, chaired by Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
The measures aim to mitigate transport costs following price pressures on petrol and diesel. President Bola Tinubu cited several operational outcomes across the country, noting that public transport vehicles powered by CNG and electricity in Borno State charge between ₦50 ($0.038) and ₦100 ($0.075) on routes where commercial operators charge ₦300 ($0.226) to ₦600 ($0.451). In Kaduna State, 100 CNG-powered buses provided free transport on major routes, serving 3,200,000 passengers and saving commuters over ₦3,500,000,000 ($2,629,207) in their first year.
Additional fare reductions cited by the Federal Government of Nigeria include CNG buses in Oyo State lowering the Lagos to Ibadan fare from ₦8,000 ($6.01) to ₦3,200 ($2.40), and Adamawa State alternative-energy transit services cutting fares by 50%, from ₦8,000 ($6.01) to ₦4,000 ($3.01). In Enugu State, 100 CNG buses reduced the Enugu to Nsukka fare from ₦2,500 ($1.88) to ₦1,500 ($1.13). In Plateau State, government-supported buses carry 13,000 commuters daily at ₦200 ($0.15), compared with over ₦500 ($0.38) charged commercially.
In Abuja, in partnership with the National Union of Road Transport Workers, CNG-converted vehicles offer a 40% fare reduction, bringing fares on the Area 1 to Gwagwalada route down from ₦1,500 ($1.13) to ₦900 ($0.68), Nyanya from ₦700 ($0.53) to ₦420 ($0.32), and Wuse from ₦400 ($0.30) to ₦240 ($0.18). In Niger State, the Suleja to Abuja fare dropped from ₦800 ($0.60) to ₦550 ($0.41), while Abia State deployed 40 electric buses with fares subsidised by 50%.
“These are not projections. Nigerians are already experiencing these savings,” President Bola Tinubu said.
Over the last three years, Nigeria has converted over 120,000 vehicles, established over 400 certified conversion centres, and opened more than 90 CNG refuelling stations nationwide.
“At a time like this, our answer cannot be to return to the ruinous petrol subsidy regime that consumed trillions of naira and left our economy exposed to every movement in international oil prices, as some have suggested,” President Bola Tinubu said. “We must accelerate the cheaper alternatives we have been building at home.”
President Bola Tinubu cited active CNG bus services in Edo State (50 buses), over 1,000 converted commercial vehicles in Kano State, expanding services in Delta State, Kwara State, and Lagos State, and the delivery of 50 CNG buses to Akwa Ibom State.
“Nigeria has the gas. We are building the infrastructure. We are already seeing the savings,” President Bola Tinubu said. “Now we must move faster and scale this so that more Nigerians feel those savings in the fares they pay every day.”
