Nigerians’ airfare costs have increased significantly over the past year, with an average ticket price rise of 34.06%.
The National Bureau of Statistics’ most recent report shows that in May 2023, airfare increased from N55,906.86 to N74,948.78.
During the same time period, commuter bus fares also increased by 11.66%. Travelers and commuters in Nigeria face difficulties as a result of these rising transportation costs.
Transportation costs
According to NBS, its statistics on transportation includes bus travel inside a city for a fixed rate per drop, bus travel between states for a fixed rate per person, air travel for a fixed rate per trip, motorcycle (Okada) travel for a fixed rate per drop, and water way passenger transport. They added:
“The average fare paid by commuters for bus journeys within the city per drop increased by 0.23% in May 2023 when N649.59 was recorded relative to N648.12 in April 2023. On a year-on-year basis, the average fare paid rose by 11.66% from N581.79 in May 2022.
“In another category, the average fare paid by commuters for bus journey intercity per drop in May 2023 was N4,002.16, indicating an increase of 0.19% on a month-on-month basis compared to the N3,994.51 recorded in April 2023. On a year-on-year basis, this rose by 9.09% from N3,668.64 in May 2022. “
Air Travel
For airfares, NBS noted that the average fare paid by air passengers for specified routes and single journeys increased by 0.002% on a month-on-month basis from N74,947.30 in April 2023 to N74,948.78 in May 2023.
“On a year-on-year basis, the fare rose by 34.06% from N55,906.86 in May 2022. The average fare paid on Okada transportation in May 2023 was N464.55, a 0.49% increase from the rate recorded in April 2023 (N462.29).”
They added that okada fares rose by 11.30% when compared with the value in May 2022 which was N417.39.