Neglected ‘El-Rufai Buses’ Mirror Abuja Urban Mass Transit Company’s Struggles Amid Commuters’ Woes

The primary rationale behind the establishment of the Abuja Urban Mass Transit Company (AUMTCO) has since lost its place with the abandonment of the outfit that once catered to the growing transit needs of commuters within and around Abuja city center. This can be largely blamed on neglect and leadership ineptitude by successive governments.

The scheme was established by the then Ministry of Federal Capital Territory, now the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), in 1984 as Abuja Bus Service (ABS), and later registered as Abuja Urban Mass Transit Company Limited under the Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990. It was, among other things, designed to provide “the best value for money and the safest, most reliable rescheduled and bus hire services in Nigeria.” It was also intended to plan, develop, implement, and organize an environmentally friendly and sustainable urban public transport system in the FCT for effective, comfortable, safe, regular, efficient, and affordable transport service delivery.

Left to rot and languish in decay, the scheme has given private vehicle owners the impetus to latch onto the opportunity to milk commuters in dire need of day-to-day transport services to reach their various destinations, cutting across Mararaba, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Bwari, and Kubwa, respectively.

Although the Obasanjo regime (1999-2007), through the FCT Minister Nasir El Rufai, gave the scheme a fresh start, it is little wonder why it is fondly referred to as “El Rufai Buses.” But with the passage of time, the scheme became moribund, showing signs of steady decline from the initial number of over 500.

The current wave of subsidy removal and the attendant fuel hike and scarcity has added to the pangs of transportation woes for commuters within the FCT and its environs, with many Nigerians calling on the government to revamp the transport scheme, thereby cushioning the high cost of fares within the metropolis.