Nairobi matatu operators are starring at hefty parking charges after and Nairobi County Government sought to revise the charges upwards.
14-seater matatus will be required to pay Ksh 5,000 between every sixth day and the 24th of every month. For the rest of the period, the matatus will be expected to pay a fee of Ksh 3,650.
For minibuses, the charges will range between Ksh 5,280 and Ksh 8,000 while that of buses will vary between Ksh 7,200 and Ksh 10,000.
In a statement, the two organisations explained that the increase was reviewed following the return of full capacity transport for commuters.
The exercise is expected to kick off on Saturday, September 25.
This is a departure from the reduced fee charge for the same services that had been put in place due to the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on transport.
In March 2020, the Ministry of Health had directed all public service vehicles to reduce the capacity of passengers per trip in an attempt to curb the spread of the virus.
Motorists in Nairobi have been at loggerheads with City Hall with reports indicating that the county government, in association with Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS), was seeking to charge parking fees in estates.
The move angered motorists and attracted the wrath of Nairobi Senator Sakaja Johnson who termed it unfair.
At the beginning of September, NMS halted the plan to charge parking fees in city estates until proper consultations have been done.
“I want to make it clear that this is not something that we will just implement without listening to the public. We must review and look at it properly,” stated NMS boss Mohammed Badi.
In a previous tussle, Public Transport stakeholders had urged NMS, which was looking into banning matatus from the CBD, to double the parking fee of private vehicles.
Matatu Welfare Association (MWA) chairperson Dickson Mbugua argued that private vehicles were the cause of congestion in the city. He lamented that the cars carried fewer passengers as compared to matatus.
