Uber sees place for minibuses

Uber might roll out a new service in Kenya to help users book seats on minibuses that ply the streets of the congested capital, if tests on the product in Egypt and Mexico prove successful, a company executive said on Wednesday.

Uber may roll out a new service in Kenya to help users book seats on minibuses that ply the streets of the capital, if tests on the product in Egypt and Mexico prove successful, a company executive said on Wednesday.

Uber estimates that more than a third of Kenyans in Nairobi use the often crowded minibuses, known as matatus, as their main form of transport around the city, Uber East Africa GM Loic Amado told Reuters.

“We want to be part of the transportation ecosystem in Nairobi and matatus are a big part of how people move around,” he said, adding that the feature would be available on the Uber app.

The company already operates Uber Pool and Uber Express Pool in cities such as London and New York, so taxi drivers can carry more passengers heading to the same or nearby destinations.

The service that may be rolled out in Kenya is being tested in Egypt’s capital, Cairo, and Monterrey in Mexico.

Uber, which launched in Kenya four years ago and now has 6,000 active drivers, is seeking an edge over rival operators such as Estonian ridehailer Taxify and Little, set up by Nairobi-based Craft Silicon.

Once the service is proven in Nairobi, Amado said it could be expanded to Kenya’s neighbours, such as the Ugandan capital of Kampala and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.

The idea would be to apply it to vehicles carrying up to 16 people and would allow customers to track minibuses.

“It would help reduce idle time at the bus stop during slow hours,” said Jackson Onyinkwa, chair of one of Nairobi’s matatu associations. His association has 46 vehicles.

The government announced this week measures to bring more order to the matatu industry, seeking to curb traffic violations and overcrowding. Drivers staged a one-day strike in protest, but returned to work after 2,000 were detained by the authorities. /