The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has approved the design for a proposed monorail linking Ikeja Railway Station to Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, marking another step towards improving rail access to Nigeria’s busiest aviation gateway.
The approval was announced on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, following a review meeting involving the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Olubunmi Onabanjo-Kuku, and the project’s engineering teams.
The proposed rail connection is expected to extend the Lagos Red Line from Ikeja into the airport complex, giving passengers, airport workers and other commuters an alternative to road transport.
The planned route has five stations: Ikeja Railway Station, Domestic Airport Station, Beesam Station, Toll Gate Station and MMIA Airport Station, which is expected to serve the international terminal.
The project forms part of wider efforts to modernise the Lagos airport and improve connectivity between the city’s rail network and its airport terminals.
However, approval of the design does not mean construction has started, as the financing arrangement and implementation schedule remain key outstanding issues.
On Sunday, October 18, 2026, FAAN Managing Director Onabanjo-Kuku said discussions on the financing structure for the airport rail project had reached an advanced stage.
Speaking at the World Aviation Festival in Lisbon, Portugal, she said the authorities were working to conclude the capital structure for the proposed extension.
According to reports by Channels Television and BusinessDay on October 18, the project is being pursued through collaboration involving the Federal Government, FAAN and the Lagos State Government.
The proposed connection is intended to link the airport’s terminals with the Lagos Red Line as part of the wider modernisation programme for MMIA.
The government has yet to publicly establish a construction commencement date, completion timeline or total project cost in the announcements reviewed for this report.
These details will be important in determining when passengers can begin using the service and how the project will be funded and delivered.
If implemented, the rail link could reduce passengers’ dependence on road transport when travelling between Ikeja and the airport. Its practical benefits will also depend on station accessibility, connections to other transport services and how conveniently passengers can travel with their luggage.
For now, the design approval represents progress in planning the airport connection, but the project’s delivery will depend on completing the financing arrangements and moving to construction.
