The plight of the average Nigerian may be getting worse by the day as they face multiple economic challenges.
With a headline inflation rate of 33.2 per cent and food inflation of 40.01 per cent, chiefly blamed on the high cost of transportation, which has continued to rise, it might take a while for respite to come.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in its Transport Fare Watch report for March 2024, shows that the average fare paid by commuters for bus journey intercity per drop was N7,152.97 in March, showing an increase of 2.14 per cent on a month-on-month basis compared to N7,002.97 in February 2024.

On a year-on-year basis, the fare rose by 79.17 per cent from N3,992.36 in March 2023.

For journeys within the city, the average fare paid by commuters per drop increased by 1.85 per cent from N951.76 in February 2024 to N969.32 in March. On a year-on-year basis, the fares rose by 49.55 per cent from N648.16.

Transport Fare Watch for March 2024 covers bus journey within the city per drop constant route; bus journey intercity (state route) charge per person; air fare charge for specified routes single journey; journey by motorcycle (Okada) per drop and water way passenger transport.

In air travel, the average fare paid by air passengers for specified routes single journey was N88,964.86 in March, indicating an increase of 1.1 per cent when compared to the previous month of February 2024.

On a year-on-year basis, the fare rose by 18.96 per cent from N74,782.43.

The average transport fare paid on Okada transportation was N472.16 in March, which increased by 0.92 per cent when compared with the value recorded in February 2024 (N467.84). On a year-on-year basis, the fare increased by 2.15 per cent when compared with March 2023 (N462.21).

For water transport (waterway passenger transportation), the average fare paid in March 2024 declined to N1,384.32 from N1,395.81 which indicates a decrease of 0.82 per cent every month. On a year-on-year basis, it increased by 34.25 per cent from N1,031.12 in March 2023.

On state profile analysis, for intercity bus travel (state route charged per person fare), the highest fare was recorded in Anambra with N9,700, followed by Akwa-Ibom with N9,000. The lowest fare was recorded in Kwara with N5,500, followed by Ebonyi with N5,700.

Taraba state recorded the highest bus journey within the city (per drop constant route) in March 2024 with N1,450 followed by Ondo with N1,200.
On the other hand, Abia recorded the least with N520, followed by Adamawa with N580. Similarly, Rivers recorded the highest air transport charges (for specified routes single journeys) with N100,000, followed by Kano with N96,000.

Conversely, Abia recorded the least fare with N70,000, followed by Plateau with N80,500. Also, Lagos State had the highest motorcycle transport fare in March 2024 with N850, followed by Ondo with N725. The lowest fare was recorded in Anambra with N240, while Bayelsa followed with N270.00. Similarly, water transport fare was highest in Bayelsa with N4,500, followed by Delta with N4,200, while the lowest fare was recorded in Borno with N440, followed by Gombe with N560.