LAMATA Unveils 2050 Mobility Blueprint, Bets on Rail and Ferries as Lagos Confronts Congestion Crisis

The Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) has launched an ambitious long-term mobility strategy that pivots decisively from road expansion toward an integrated mass transit network, with rail, Bus Rapid Transit and structured ferry operations at its core.

The updated Strategic Transport and Mobility Master Plan, which stretches to 2050, was presented at a high-level stakeholders’ workshop supported by the French Development Agency (AFD). Speaking at the session, Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation Oluwaseun Osiyemi declared that road construction alone can no longer keep pace with the city’s explosive growth and crushing congestion.

“We will prioritise a multimodal network anchored on rail expansion, improved BRT systems and structured ferry operations, all designed to function as a coordinated urban transport ecosystem,” Osiyemi said.

The plan also envisages the modernisation of the public bus fleet with cleaner energy solutions, while strengthening last-mile connectivity to improve accessibility and ease of movement across the metropolis.

LAMATA Managing Director Abimbola Akinajo reinforced the urgency, warning that Lagos’ population could swell to 45 million by 2050. The city already records more than 20 million daily trips, a demand she said requires nothing less than a resilient and forward-looking transport framework.

Akinajo disclosed that the master plan update is at an advanced stage, backed by extensive multimodal surveys and the development of a new travel demand model that will guide infrastructure planning and service delivery. She stressed that sustained stakeholder engagement remains critical to refining a strategy capable of meeting the city’s long-term mobility needs.

The workshop drew senior officials from across the transport and economic sectors, including representatives of the Nigerian Railway Corporation and the Ogun State Ministry of Transportation, a reflection, organisers said, of the regional scope that mobility planning now demands.

Technical sessions were led by the ROM/AEC Consortium, with contributions from key ministries and agencies responsible for economic planning, urban development, infrastructure and waterways management, signalling a coordinated push to deliver a more efficient, sustainable and interconnected transport system for Africa’s largest city.