Tricycle Transport and Urban Sustainability in Zaria, Nigeria: A Multidimensional Assessment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47514/kjg.2026.08.01.066Keywords:
Tricycle transportation, sustainable urban mobility, paratransit, informal transport, Zaria metropolis, NigeriaAbstract
Rapid urbanisation and limited formal public transport in Nigerian cities have led motorised tricycles to absorb a growing share of short-distance urban travel, yet their overall contribution to sustainable mobility remains poorly understood. This study examined tricycle transportation as a sustainable urban mobility mode in Zaria metropolis, Nigeria, investigating the socioeconomic and travel characteristics of users, patterns of utilisation, and relationships between user characteristics and tricycle use. A quantitative cross-sectional survey of 290 tricycle operators and 365 patrons was conducted across eight major terminals, employing structured questionnaires and field observations. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Spearman's rank-order correlation, and ordinal logistic regression. The findings reveal that patrons are predominantly young (73.1% aged 18–35 years), students (33.7%), and low- to middle-income earners (60.0% earning below ₦100,000 monthly), while operators are exclusively male with secondary education or less. Sustainability perception analysis showed strong endorsement of economic sustainability (90.5% agreement on employment creation) and social sustainability (89.7% agreement on accessibility) but ambivalent environmental perceptions. An ordinal logistic regression showed that all three sustainability dimensions significantly predicted trip frequency, with economic perception the strongest predictor (B = 0.456, p < 0.001; odds ratio = 1.58), followed by social perception (B = 0.345, p < 0.001; odds ratio = 1.41) and environmental perception (B = 0.234, p < 0.01; odds ratio = 1.26), jointly explaining 28.9% of the variance in trip frequency (Nagelkerke R² = 0.289). Major challenges facing operators include poor road conditions (84.8%) and high fuel costs (77.2%). The study concludes that tricycles provide essential mobility and employment in Zaria but face significant sustainability constraints. Recommendations include infrastructure investment, regulatory reform, operator support programmes, and transition to cleaner technologies to enhance the sustainability of tricycle transport in Nigerian cities.
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This is an original manuscript not under consideration elsewhere. All authors approve the submission and declare no conflicts of interest. Ethical approval was obtained, and informed consent was secured from all participants. Data are available upon reasonable request. The authors are available to provide any additional information needed during the review process.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Dahiru Suleiman, Samson Adelusi Oludele, Umar Khalil Alhassan, Mukhtar Muhammad (Author)
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