Over 300 jobs in Nigeria’s airport cab-hire sector are at risk as the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) moves to enforce an October 2026 deadline requiring operators to replace vehicles manufactured before 2012.
Chairman of the Airport Cab Operators, Prince Amosola, said the 17 licensed car-hire companies operating at the airport were struggling to meet the vehicle upgrade requirement, warning that the policy could push hundreds of workers into an already saturated labour market.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja, Amosola said most operators could not afford to replace their existing vehicles with newer models, with the cost of a 2012 vehicle estimated by operators at between N15 million and N18 million.
He said each of the 17 companies had more than 50 vehicles, but FAAN was now requiring operators to reduce their fleets to 30 vehicles per company while also enforcing the vehicle age requirement.
“We have nothing less than 50 cars for each company times 17 companies. And finally they are telling us that we should bring it down to 30 cars from each company,” he said.
Amosola said the operators had appealed to FAAN and the relevant authorities for more time to comply, arguing that the transition to newer vehicles should be gradual.
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He said operators were also considering electric vehicles (EVs), following discussions with the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, but that the cost of acquiring the vehicles remained prohibitive.
“Even if you go to EV, how much is one EV? N38 million,” he said, adding that operators needed more time to raise funds for the transition.
The operators said the proposed October deadline would affect not only business owners but also drivers and other workers who depend on airport cab operations for their livelihoods.
Ekwuemeaku Alex of Edom Comfort Auto Lease Ltd said the income generated by many operators was already low relative to their operating costs.
He said some operators could make about N20,000 to N25,000 from a trip, but after fuel and other expenses, drivers could be left with about N10,000.
He argued that airport cab operators faced different operating conditions from e-hailing services such as Bolt, which could secure return trips after dropping passengers.
“We only have one trip, just to town. We don’t have any other business to do in town. When we drop the passenger, we come back empty,” he said.
Alhaji Sulieman Maman of Leviticus Auto Car Service Ltd said the operators were not opposed to upgrading their vehicles but objected to what they described as an abrupt implementation of the policy.
He said previous changes in vehicle requirements had been introduced gradually, allowing operators time to dispose of old vehicles and acquire newer ones.
“From the beginning, even if there is going to be any change, they write to us. Then we now talk to our people. That’s okay, this is the situation now. In the next possibly one, two, three years, everybody should try as much as to change their cars,” Maman said.
He also alleged that FAAN’s introduction of additional cab companies had intensified competition for a limited number of passengers at the airports.
Gbenga Kolawole of Giant Motors Ltd also rejected allegations that airport cab operators were exploiting passengers through excessive fares.
He said operators had different categories of vehicles, ranging from standard cars to executive vehicles and SUVs, with fares varying according to the type of vehicle selected.
Kolawole said the cost of fuel and airport-related charges had significantly increased the cost of providing the service.
Aliu Abdulazee Aliu of Gentle Drive said the operators had been engaging FAAN over the vehicle upgrade policy but were unable to meet the proposed requirement because of the high cost of replacement vehicles.
He said some operators had acquired their existing vehicles through hire-purchase arrangements and would struggle to finance another vehicle costing about N18 million.
Aliu said the operators had proposed lowering the required manufacturing year to 2008 to give them more time to comply, but that their proposal was rejected.
He said the impact of the policy could be significant for workers dependent on the sector.
“People that are going to lose their job, there are over 300,” he said.
The operators also questioned what they described as unequal treatment in the allocation of vehicles to different categories of transport operators at the airport.
They said they were not opposed to competition but wanted what they called a level playing field among licensed operators.
Emmanuel Ikeh Sunday, secretary-general of the Coalition of 17 Car-Hire Companies, said the operators were also concerned about the implications of the vehicle-age policy for vehicles converted under the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas (PCNG) initiative.
According to him, about 80 percent of the operators’ vehicles were converted under the scheme introduced to cushion the impact of fuel subsidy removal.
He said more than 99 percent of the vehicles converted under the programme did not meet FAAN’s proposed 2012-and-above manufacturing requirement.
“If this policy is implemented, it is completely against the policy of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Sunday said.
He said the operators had written several letters to FAAN management and held meetings with officials to explain the implications of the policy, but claimed that their appeals had not received a substantive response.
The operators also raised concerns over increases in airport cab-related charges, including the operational tariff, which they said had risen from N500 to N1,500.
FAAN, however, has said the tariff increase followed more than eight years without a review amid inflation and rising operating costs.
The authority has also maintained that its vehicle upgrade policy is aimed at improving passenger safety, comfort and service quality.
FAAN said the vehicle replacement requirement had been communicated since July 2024 and that operators had received several extensions, including extensions to January and June 2026, before the final October 2026 deadline.
The authority has warned that operators who fail to meet the vehicle requirements risk losing access to airport operations.
FAAN has also clarified that it deals directly with registered corporate cab companies rather than third-party unions or associations.
With the October deadline approaching, the airport cab operators are calling for further engagement and a longer transition period, arguing that an abrupt implementation could force businesses to close, strand existing vehicle investments and push hundreds of workers into unemployment.
