The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has announced the approval of the design for a monorail project that will connect the Ikeja Railway Station to the new Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Terminal 1 in Lagos.
Keyamo disclosed this in a statement following a meeting with the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Aviation, the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), and engineering teams from both organisations, where the project design was reviewed and approved.
According to the minister, the monorail will provide a transport link between the Ikeja Railway Station, the terminus of the Lagos Red Line, and the airport terminal currently undergoing reconstruction.
The proposed monorail will have five stations along its route: Ikeja Station, Domestic Airport Station, Beesam Station, Toll Gate Station and MMIA Airport Station.
The project is expected to improve connectivity between the rail network and the airport, providing commuters and air travellers with another transport option for accessing the country’s busiest international aviation gateway.
Keyamo described the monorail as an integral component of the ongoing reconstruction of the MMIA, a major infrastructure project aimed at upgrading facilities at Nigeria’s principal international airport.
The proposed connection between the Lagos Red Line and the airport is also intended to strengthen the integration of rail transportation with air travel, potentially easing access to the airport for passengers and other commuters.
However, the minister’s statement did not provide details on the project’s construction timeline, cost, expected passenger capacity or proposed commencement date.
The announcement marks a further step in the planning of transport infrastructure to support the reconstruction and modernisation of the Lagos airport, which serves as a key gateway for international travel and business in Nigeria.