The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, on Sunday began full enforcement of a cashless payment system at the tollgate leading to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, triggering heavy traffic congestion and stranding motorists and air passengers.
The development caused prolonged gridlock around the airport access road, significantly disrupting movement to and from both the domestic and international terminals.
Confirming the policy shift, FAAN’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Henry Agbebire, said the cashless initiative was introduced to block revenue leakages and improve transparency within the system.
The congestion forced some travellers to abandon their vehicles and resort to commercial motorcycles in an effort to catch their flights. Reports indicated that some operators took advantage of the situation by increasing fares by as much as 200 per cent, despite existing restrictions on motorcycle operations around the airport.
Several motorists were observed spending nearly 20 minutes at the tollgate for trips that would ordinarily take less than a minute, worsening the bottleneck at the key entry point into the airport complex.
Some drivers also engaged toll officials in heated exchanges over failed electronic transfers and delays in payment confirmation.
Many affected users accused FAAN of poor public sensitisation ahead of the rollout, arguing that the abrupt enforcement created avoidable confusion.
One motorist, Adebayo Awojobi, said he had been stuck in traffic for almost an hour and expressed concern that the situation could deteriorate further on weekdays. He added that officials on ground appeared overwhelmed by the volume of motorists.
However, Agbebire rejected claims of inadequate awareness, stating that the enforcement aligns with the Federal Government’s broader cashless policy drive. He maintained that the system is aimed at curbing extortion, enhancing accountability and boosting FAAN’s revenue generation.
He attributed the disruption partly to last-minute compliance by motorists and insisted that sufficient access cards were available.
“The card itself is issued free of charge, but once it is loaded with N2,000 or N1,000, a maintenance fee of N500 is deducted,” Agbebire said.
