The Federal Government has disclosed that after the resumption of train services between the Abuja and Kaduna routes, passengers will have to provide their National Identification number and phone number to purchase tickets.

Minister of Transportation Mua’zu Sambo disclosed this on Sunday while inspecting the test running the train route.

He said:

” The issue of whether the train will start tomorrow or not, we have not said the train services will start tomorrow.

“I want to be very categorical about that. Now, we have introduced a new system before you buy a ticket.

“Your purchase of a ticket requires you to provide a phone number and a national identification number in order to profile, because that is the beginning of the security checks.

“So, at any point in time when a train moves from one station to another we know who and who are on board.

“If you don’t have an NIN you are not going to board our train. It is as simple as that.

The minister said that minors will need adults to register for them be allowed in the train.

“If you are a minor, an adult will pay for you and will register for you and an adult can only register for not more than four minors.”

“Now, we want to give sufficient time for the Nigerian public to listen to these and assimilate this new system, because if we start tomorrow, a lot of people will be disgruntled.

He also noted that the train service for the Abuja and Kaduna route is slated to resume in less than a week.

“Definitely between three, four, five days, certainly not more than a week.”

The minister further stated that foreigners must also have a means of identification which NIMC will provide.

“And if you are a foreigner you also have a means of identification you can use which is produced by the National Identity Management Commission.

“Having secured your ticket, you will not get access to the lounge until the machine reads the barcode in your receipt.

“Your details will show and your complete profile will show on the screen. Only then will you be allowed to go into the lounge.
This is what we call customer profiling,” Sambo said.

According to the minister, there will be an increased number of security personnel, and some won’t wear uniforms in order to guarantee the safety of passengers.