The Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) and bus operators have drafted resolutions pertaining to proposed bus fares as a result of hiked fuel prices.
The resolutions were submitted to Works, Supply, Transport and Communications Minister Christopher Yaluma for scrutiny, after a closed door meeting on Monday evening.
Both RTSA executive director Zindaba Soko and Lusaka Capital Buses proprietor Ismail Kankhara confirmed the development in separate interviews yesterday.
Mr Soko said the Agency convened a thriving meeting with the bus operators and that the resolutions made were immediately submitted to Mr Yaluma for analysis.
“We had a good deliberation yesterday (Monday). What we did, we had to set some deliberations which were sent to the relevant minister for his attention,” Mr Soko said
He however, could not divulge details pertaining to the resolutions agreed upon with the bus operators during the meeting.
And Mr Kankhara, who described the meeting as cordial and successful, said he was impressed with the manner in which RTSA swiftly handled deliberations of the meeting.
“We resolved everything yesterday and I am happy that RTSA and us, we came up with some resolutions which were submitted to them (RTSA) and I am sure the director will in due course inform the nation,” he said The bus operators have proposed a KR1 bus increment in Lusaka following the fuel price upward adjustment last week.
Efforts to get a comment from Mr Yaluma failed by press time as his phone was switched off.
In Kitwe, bus and taxi fares for some of the intra-routes in Kitwe were yesterday raised by a margin of K200.
A check around 17:00 hours on the fare-chart for routes such as Ipusukilo and Kwacha, which initially had been pegged at K3, 300 found the charges had raised to K3, 500.
On other routes such as Chimwemwe, the fare-chart was however found pegged on the same old charges of K3, 000.
For pirate taxis, most of them on routes such as Chimwemwe and Wusakile were found to have increased the fares by a margin of K500 per person, as they were found charging K3, 500 from the previous K3, 000 respectively.
However, Bus fares for all routes in Ndola remain unchanged as public transport operators in the city have pledged to comply with the Government’s directive that changes to bus and taxi fares should only be effected once consultations with various stakeholders are concluded.
Last week, Public transport operators in the city said they would hike bus fares by at least KR 1.00 for all routes in view of the KR 1.75 upward adjustment to the prices of all petroleum products.
Ndola bus driver’s association representative Samuel Shachinongo said in an interview yesterday that bus fares for long and short distance routes in the city remained unchanged and operators had agreed to wait for Government’s feedback on the matter.
“We have already written to the Government on the issue fares and we are just waiting to get feedback from the Ministry of Transport, but as for now transport fares for all routes remain the same,” he said.
Sad development for our country
Lesa somone! Mpindi yatama! Let me take the back seat, the storm is becoming too much!
Until now, governing the Peaceful Zambian Nation looked so straight forward!
for operators, as businessmen, this wait must be antagonising especialy as on the fuel increase there was no waiting. these are bussinessmen who must pay salaries and taxes
WHY WAS OUR PASSAGERS ASSOCIATION NOT INVITED TO DISCUSSION
when fuel price was reduced in 2011 bus fares were not reduced and the price hs jst been taken back to the old price and they want to increase fares why?
fuel was pegged at K9,300.00 during mwanawasa era, bus fare from town to chelston was K2,800.00 so what is kankara wanting from poor pipo of zambia. His rotten buses are not fit to be on the road. Who even made this shameless economic refugee local transport official with such rotten buses fit for carrying cockroches. Kankara your time of milking zedian must come to an end.