The Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) has begun phasing out diesel-powered buses from the state’s regulated public bus system, restricting operators adding new buses to compressed natural gas (CNG) and electric vehicles (EVs).
The LAMATA Managing Director/CEO, Engr. Mrs. Abimbola Akinajo, disclosed this while speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the handover of 20 additional high-capacity CNG buses under the Presidential Initiative on CNG and EV.
The policy, which took effect at the beginning of 2026, means LAMATA will no longer accept new diesel buses from operators, while existing diesel buses will be progressively replaced with CNG and electric alternatives.
LAMATA restricts new diesel buses
Akinajo said the decision is linked to Lagos’ commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, with transportation identified as one of the major sources of emissions. She said LAMATA has directed operators bringing new buses into the regulated public transport system to use CNG or electric vehicles instead of diesel-powered buses.
- “We know that transport is one of the major sources of emissions, and LAMATA has now told all our operators bringing in new buses that we will no longer accept diesel buses.”
- “We will only work with CNG or EV buses, and this has been the policy since the beginning of the year,” Akinajo said.
She added that LAMATA would progressively replace existing diesel buses, with all buses operated within the regulated system during the transition expected to be powered by either CNG or electricity.
The system is eventually expected to move fully to electric buses.
Before the handover of the additional buses, LAMATA had about 150 CNG buses in its fleet, while it also operated high-capacity and medium-capacity electric buses. The 20 CNG buses will expand the existing CNG fleet, with some potentially deployed on the Ikorodu-TBS corridor because of high passenger demand.
Rising diesel costs drive CNG shift
Akinajo further noted that the shift to CNG and electric buses is also helping LAMATA manage rising operating costs in the regulated public transport system, particularly as diesel prices have more than doubled this year. Akinajo said diesel, which sold for about N950 per litre at the beginning of the year, now costs between N1,950 and N2,100 per litre, depending on the source.
She said the increase has significantly raised the operating costs of diesel-powered buses and could put pressure on operators to increase fares.
- “Regulated public transport fares have not increased, and these buses have helped us achieve that.”
- “The lower operating costs of CNG and electric buses allow us to manage the higher fuel costs without passing the full increase on to commuters,” she said.
LAMATA already has an operating ecosystem for CNG buses and works with private-sector stakeholders, including Ibile Oil & Gas, to support CNG supply. Akinajo also said private-sector investment in CNG infrastructure is expanding across Lagos, with more CNG stations being developed to support the growing fleet.
Lagos targets cleaner BRT fleet
The Lagos State Transport Policy targets having 52% of BRT buses powered by clean energy by 2050. It also aims to reduce car trips to 2% of total trips and increase biodiesel use in freight vehicles.
The policy identifies gas and electricity as cleaner fuels for reducing transport emissions, noting that some BRT buses had already begun conversion to gas, while new buses purchased by Lagos Bus Services Limited and private operators are expected to be gas-powered.
It also provides for cleaner-fuel strategies, priority routes for cleaner buses and the procurement of cleaner vehicles for BRT and other public transport modes.
Federal CNG rollout expands nationwide
The Federal Government is promoting CNG and electric vehicles to reduce transportation costs, with President Bola Tinubu saying state governors had agreed to leverage their lower operating costs to reduce fares.
- In Kaduna, Tinubu said 100 CNG buses carried about 3.2 million passengers in their first year and saved commuters more than N3.5 billion.
- He also cited fare reductions linked to CNG and alternative-energy transport in Oyo, Enugu, Plateau, Abuja, Niger and Abia.
- The Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund is financing more than 100 gas projects, including 15 CNG mother stations and 86 daughter stations.
- The government plans to add 500 CNG refuelling stations to the 500 already ordered, bringing the planned nationwide rollout to 1,000 stations.
The government is targeting the conversion of one million commercial petrol vehicles to CNG by 2027. About 120,000 vehicles have so far been converted, according to data on the Pi-CNG/EV website, while the initiative has attracted more than $2.5 billion in investment.