The Surface and Marine Transport Regulatory Authority (SUMATRA), intends to issue temporary route licenses to bus owners in attempt to curb fare hikes during Christmas and New Year Festivals.
The plan is also set to reduce upcountry passengers at the Ubungo bus terminal in Dar es Salaam, which is being pulled down to give way to the Rapid Bus Transit project.
Speaking to this paper yesterday, the authority’s public information manager David Mziray confirmed that Sumatra will start issuing the more affordable licenses starting today (Monday).
“The charge for a license is 7,000/-. Owners of mini-buses interested in transporting passengers to upcountry, will also be eligible,” he said, adding: “The entire exercise will be commissioned at Ubungo bus terminal in Dar es Salaam.”
Mziray stressed: “Each vehicle will be fully inspected for safety before being issued with the license to take passengers upcountry.”
According him, during the festival there is an increase in the number of passengers travelling from Dar es Salaam to the northern zone than any other part of the country and that the authority decided to allow bus owners to change routes.
Meanwhile the authority has pointed an accusing finger at the City Council and some of bus owners for failing to remove touts at the Ubungo Bus Terminal.
Mziray said some bus owners have been entertaining the touts at the terminal, an act that contributes to confusing passengers and risking their safety and properties.
“If you want to prove that the touts are entertained by some of the bus owners go and visit the terminal. You will find that some of the touts are being trusted to the extent that they are given passenger charts,’’ he noted.
Mziray explained that some of the bus owners were genuinely disturbed by the presence of the touts at the terminal and that they have been reporting the problem to the relevant authorities including the police force and city council, though the authorities’ response has not been satisfactory.
Tanzania Bus Owners Association (TABOA) secretary general, Enea Mrutu denied the accusations, advising Sumatra to take concrete steps to remove the touts at the bus terminal.
“We have been calling on SUMATRA and its Consumer Consultative Council, Police Force, City Council and the Association for emancipation of passengers in the country (CHAKUA) in order to see how we can get rid of the problem but we always end up with zero response…I use this opportunity to call on them again to act if they are really committed to helping the passengers,’’ he stressed.
Speaking of variations in bus fares during festival seasons, Mrutu said the easiest way for the passenger to overcome the problem is by booking their ticket early before the departure date.
“The good news is that, nowadays we have electronic system to book tickets. …no bus owner is against the booking system….what else do the passengers want?’’ he asked.
Over the weekend, SUMATRA Consumer Consultative Council announced drastic measures including filing cases against bus owners who will raise passenger fares at the approaching Christmas and New Year season.
The Council’s Executive Secretary, Oscar Kikoyo, urged passengers to report any acts related to arbitral rise of passenger fares, ticket speculation as well as fraud and luggage theft in bus stations across the country.
“However we remind passengers especially those who expect to travel late December for the festival period to make sure they make their ticket bookings as early as possible to avoid inconveniences,’’ he said.
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