As the sting of nationwide fuel scarcity bites harder with no end in sight, Nigerians have started to count its monetary cost and environment impact.

Residents of Ibadan – ranging from school children, market women and civil servants – now fall back on the ‘Ajumose Buses’, which price is cheaper, compared to commuter bus drivers’ plying the metropolis.

News Express findings in the Oyo State capital also revealed that since the fuel scarcity began there has been constant hike in transport fare, as passengers now pay twice the normal amount in commuting to various parts of the ancient city and beyond.

Besides the financial effect, it was gathered that the metropolis has experienced unusual traffic gridlock, which resulted in air pollution from vehicles, in what a commuter described as “the lamentable queue of cars flooding fuel stations, at the expense of their normal socio-economic activities.”

To ease the flow of transportation in the state given the general increase in bus fare, residents now scramble to board the ‘Ajumose Buses’ provided by the administration of Governor Abiola Ajimobi, which most them earlier snubbed.

A commuter who was approached during checks observed: “The transport situation in Ibadan now is worst. I do not think I have experienced this before in this city. Now, to get to one’s destination, it costs double the usual price.”

Whereas it was discovered that most fuel stations are still under lock, the traffic situation was made worse by the fact that the ones selling fuel barricaded their entrances, in order to avoid scrambling and congestion in their stations. As a result, customers were compelled to park along the road, in long queues outside the fuel stations.

•Photo shows some Ibadan residents scrambling for Ajumose Bus.

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