By Daily Trust | 13 December 2025
A Train System in Crisis and Path Forward
An unsurprising and predictable lament over the state of the AKTS.
Mr Widi-Jalo speaks to the unsustainability of train operations by the NRC and the reasons are not far fetched. The structure of the industry which creates conflicts of interest and the unenterprising civil service culture of the NRC which renders railway uncompetitive are the primary reasons why the railway careers from crisis to crisis. The externalities of insecurity and vandalism compounding the issues. That ticket racketeering has come to stay is perhaps the tragedy that bedevils the system the most.
I’d however differ from his prescription for remediation. While on all fours with him on effective NRC unbundling, I’d disagree that the fixed infrastructure be managed independently of the operator. It is imperative that the operator manages the infrastructure and where there are more than one operator, the heaviest user should manage the infrastructure and grant access to other operators in what we know as partial separation. The integration of operations and infrastructure is critical for sustainable railways. This becomes tricky when separated and is cited as a key shortcoming of the British rail privatisation. It must however be understood that there is a world of difference between ownership of the infrastructure and control of it. So while the infrastructure could be owned by a 3rd party such as an infraco or asset manager, control should rest with the lead operator.
The other problematic prescription is in making the Minister, the regulator. For effectiveness, the regulator is required to be independent of government and market participants. The Minister’s role should be in policy formulation and in providing statutory guidance to the players.