THE Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has cleared Bolt to resume operations at airports under its management, weeks after the temporary disruption of e-hailing services triggered concerns over higher transportation costs and inconvenience for passengers.
The authority, in a statement signed by its Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Henry Agbebire, on Thursday, August 27, said it had reached an “agreeable operational framework” with Bolt following engagements between both parties.
The decision marks a shift in FAAN’s recent approach to commercial transportation at airports, where the authority had sought to impose greater structure on how taxis and e-hailing vehicles pick up passengers.
FAAN acknowledged that the disruption had a significant impact on travellers and apologised for the difficulties it caused.
“We sincerely apologise for the difficulties this caused our passengers,” the authority said.
It added that it had “listened, reflected and made the necessary adjustments.”
The latest development followed growing controversy over FAAN’s Airport Car Hire Rank Management System (ACHRAMS), a digital platform the authority introduced to regulate commercial transportation at airports.
The implementation of the system had reportedly triggered resistance from some airport cab operators, who complained about the requirements and the manner in which the reform was being introduced. A viral video in which distressed airport taxi drivers appealed to President Bola Tinubu to intervene further drew public attention to the dispute.
The drivers alleged that they were being required to operate newer vehicles, with one of them claiming that they had been directed to acquire vehicles manufactured from 2020, which he said could cost between N18 million and N30 million.
FAAN’s defence
According to FAAN, its concerns over airport transportation were not new. The authority said it had spent nearly a decade trying to address problems associated with commercial and e-hailing vehicles operating within airport premises.
These, it said, included passenger solicitation and touting, unregulated operations, random pick-ups, and concerns around safety, security and accountability.
FAAN said the situation was further complicated by drivers operating on multiple platforms, prompting the authority to strengthen its oversight of commercial transportation at airports.
As part of that effort, the authority introduced the Airport Car Hire Rank Management System (ACHRAMS), a system designed to manage queues, airport car-hire ranks and authorised airport transportation services.
The introduction of ACHRAMS, however, became a source of public concern, particularly amid questions over whether FAAN was attempting to restrict or replace e-hailing platforms.
Speaking on the issue in its recent statement, FAAN said “ACHRAMS is not an e-hailing application and was never conceived as a competitor to Uber, Bolt or any other mobility platform.”
The authority maintained that it supports competition and does not intend to create a monopoly in airport transportation.
Fares are not new – FAAN
The ICIR also reports that the controversy also drew attention to the cost of transportation from airports, with passengers comparing airport taxi fares with lower fares available through e-hailing applications.
FAAN said the taxi fares that became the subject of public discussion were not newly introduced by the authority or created by ACHRAMS.
According to the authority, airport taxi fares existed independently of the system and had not changed substantially.
It said ACHRAMS only made the existing fares more visible to passengers.
“What ACHRAMS introduced was greater visibility and transparency around the prevailing airport-taxi rates, making the cost more readily apparent to passengers. FAAN recognises, however, that the comparison with the lower fares passengers had become accustomed to through e-hailing platforms understandably heightened public concern,” FAAN said.
The authority said the comparison “understandably heightened public concern.”
Bolt gets immediate clearance
Following its agreement with Bolt, FAAN said the company was cleared to commence operations immediately at airports it manages.
The authority said the agreement showed that airport security and regulatory requirements could be maintained while preserving passengers’ access to e-hailing services.
FAAN said it was also engaging other e-hailing operators and expected the outstanding discussions to be concluded in the coming days.
The authority reiterated that passengers should remain free to choose among available transportation options.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M