Will Bus Rapid Transport answer Nairobi jam question?

After five decades in control of the public transport system, matatu operators are facing one of the toughest challenges yet with the expected entry of the Government in the lucrative industry.

The Saturday Standard understands that what began as a stop-gap measure by the State to ‘aid’ commuters by introducing National Youth Service (NYS) vehicles, will be a fully fledged Government bus service in three weeks.

The project started with the designation of one lane on Thika Super Highway as a Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) lane on Thursday includes the banning of matatus from the CBD from next week.

Eventually, if the Government succeeds in its ambitious BRT system, commuters in Nairobi will have an option of travelling efficiently along six corridors without being stuck in traffic, trapped in chaotic machines that charactarise the city’s mass transport.

The plan is to emulate Dar-es-Salaam’s BRT, launched in 2016 at a cost of Sh16 billion and which has been successful.

The big question now is whether Nairobi can finally get its transport system right with a Government-run BRT system. At least a dozen instances since the introduction of the Michuki rules that attempt to rein in the matatu sector have failed.

Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko order in September banning matatus from the CBD was rescinded after operators agreed in principle to maintain order in the city centre.

“Many people have already said Nairobi will become a slum and you must help me do what is expected of you,” Sonko told the operators at meeting in City Hall. For two days the city was orderly and traffic was moving.

Dar-es-Saalam’s first phase of BRT spans 21 km and serves an average of 160,000 passengers per day with a fleet of 140 buses. By mid this year it is projected that 300 buses will be available to ferry an estimated 400,000 passenger.

This is what Nairobi hopes to achieve. Before that however, hurdles have to be dealt with starting with the positioning of the BRT lanes that have been critisised as not being commuter-friendly and dealing with matatu owners who are not happy with the Government’s move.

“The Government is supposed to provide infrastructure. The operators are supposed to be facilitated to purchase vehicles to serve on the routes,” Wambugu Kanoru, the secretary general Matatu Transport Vehicles Association said.

He added: “Matatus have been demonised and yes there is need to change the situation. This should however not be done by creating unfair competition.”

In order to have access to the BRT lanes and the CBD, buses must have a minimum passenger capacity of 85. The first fleet of 50 buses with a capacity of over 100 passengers will be launched in four weeks.

While appearing before the Senate’s Transport Committee on Thursday, Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia termed the introduction of the NYS buses not new as 10 of them are already operational.

Feasibility studies

“Apart from the NYS buses, the private sector is expected to bring in another 100 buses with three months,” said the CS.

“We have engaged the National Treasury to see if they bring proper BRT buses with certain specifications then the Treasury will consider favourably removing duty on this buses. That will make sure we have more buses coming and the fares will come down, because the operators can’t have it both ways,” he said.

Several feasibility studies have placed Nairobi as a great candidate for a BRT system due to its high population and low car ownership. At least 7 out of 10 Nairobians use mass transport to get to work. Kenya Railways transports only 35,000 commuters on its three lines per day.

For matatu owners it is the fact that they are about to compete with a State-funded competitor with exclusive access to express lanes and the CBD that is giving them sleepless nights.

“Everybody is ready to get out of the CBD if facilities are enough but not to give way to someone else because that equal to killing the industry,” said Kanoru.

City residents however love the idea but feel there should me more awareness on how the system will operate. For instance, the idea of having the BRT lanes in the middle is something people who talked to the Saturday Standard don’t understand.

“They have buses lane in London but on the right. Can the CS tell as how they will be picking and dropping passengers,” said Francis Muingai.

In Dar-es-Saalam, BRT lanes are separated by curbs from the rest of the road and have bus stops which are linked to the shoulders of the road through underground tunnels or over passes.