Public transport gives Ugandans headache from the lockdown.

By; Charles Katabalwa

05^th June 2020

The Uganda police impounded 212 taxis and 47 buses in Kampala Metropolitan Area on the very day, they returned to the roads for flouting new rules for their operations in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

President Yoweri Museveni lifted the ban on public transport on June 1, but with strict restrictions like limiting the number of passengers to half of the vehicle’s capacity. He equally instructed that each of the passengers to have a face mask and that the taxi conductor should sanitize passengers before boarding. The drivers were also asked to register with the city authorities before resuming operations.

But Fred Enanga, the spokesperson of the Uganda Police Force said that many of the drivers had not registered with the city authorities, before returning to the road. Others were abusing the route charts released by Kampala Capital City Authority and loaded more than the authorised number of passengers.

Enanga also warned drivers against being incited into demonstrating against the new rules saying all those who will be got will be dealt with, with a firm hand. He added that if anyone is dissatisfied with the new KCCA and government measures, they should petition the rightful authorities other than going to the streets.

Speaking at the same press conference, Peter Kauju, the spokesperson of KCCA said they had registered 3,444 taxis as of today. He said they are not going to allow anybody who has not been registered, to ply any of the Kampala roads. He equally noted that no taxi is going to be allowed to ply any route other than that it has been allocated.

Kauju, however, couldn’t say how many taxis they are going to register to work in the designated Kampala parks. The government has indicated that it wants each taxi working in Kampala to pay 720,000 Shillings every year in taxes.

More than 2000 travelers spent Thursday night in city Taxi and Bus parks across Kampala due to curfew restrictions as they failed to secure transport means to their destinations.