Public transport in Kenya is going cashless as buses
switch to new electronic fare payments.
But a Tuesday deadline for all buses to implement the
cashless payments, or face fines, has been relaxed.
The sector's regulator has said that adoption will be
gradual.
At least three companies are already using the new fare
system, which operates in a similar way to London's Oyster card, with
passengers pre-loading plastic cards with money and swiping them across a
reader on board.
Customers can top up at agents, or by using mobile phone
money transfer service M-pesa.
The National Transport
and Safety Authority (NTSA), responsible for implementing the
policy, hopes it will help to tackle corruption and increase government tax
revenue. Matatu operators have also seen benefits.
George Wanyama, manager of a company piloting the cashless
system, told BBC Africa that revenue had gone up 30% in the two months since it
was launched.
But operators had called for an extension of the deadline
for implementation, citing fears of a police crackdown on non-compliant
vehicles.
The Matatu Welfare Association said that as of last Friday, only
2,000 vehicles were compliant out of more than 20,000 in operation across the
country.
Association chairman Dickson Mbugua warned that neither
the public nor matatu operators had been properly educated about the cashless
switch.
After dismissing calls for a deadline extension, the NTSA
said late Monday that operators could continue to use cash in the short term.
"Some operators are compliant while others are not.
We will be flexible to allow use of cash for the meantime," said NTSA
director general Francis Meja.
we hope to see Nigerian Danfo adopt the same cashless system. imagine conductor shouting
"You ATM card please"?
"Oga network no dey, i no get change"
Culled form BBc
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