A passenger train suffered mechanical failure and broke down along Abuja-Kaduna tracks on Thursday.

People onboard a train that left Kaduna at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday said they were nowhere near Abuja as of 4:00 p.m., two hours later. The train broke down about 45 minutes after departing its Kaduna main station in Rigasa. The trip usually takes about two-three hours. 

Passengers told Peoples Gazette that a message had been relayed to the control centre in Abuja for another train to be dispatched, although it was unclear when the backup would arrive or how it would navigate the tracks already occupied by the faulty coach.

The breakdown came hours after a coach travelling from Kaduna to Abuja broke down at about 2:00 a.m. Thursday, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded along a route that is widely dreaded for kidnapping and other violent crimes.

Engineers later fixed it on Thursday morning. It was unclear whether it was the same train that broke down this evening along the same route. A spokesman for the railway office did not immediately return a request seeking comments from the Gazette Thursday afternoon.

Last week, there were at least two reported cases of engine failures on trains plying the route from the nation’s capital to the northern commercial hub. 

Transport minister Rotimi Amaechi said the government had intensified efforts to ensure a smooth operation of all trains, although it was unclear how long it would take for the solutions to be implemented.