adminFOR years kombis — privately-owned omnibus operators — have enjoyed a strong monopoly in the public transportation system in Bulawayo and the country in general.
Monopoly is described as the exclusive possession or control of the supply of or trade in a commodity or service.
The ‘‘collapse’’ of Zupco — the Zimbabwe United Passenger Company — and withdrawal of urban trains by the National Railways of Zimbabwe at the turn of the millennium did not help matters, leaving passengers at the mercy of kombi operators that increased fares willy-nilly.
With total disregard for the welfare of their passengers, the same people they purport to be their clients, kombi operators increased fares in the blink of an eye, citing mountains of ‘‘reasons’’ such as the increased costs of servicing their fleets among other operational costs.
As the saying goes ‘‘nothing stays the same forever’’.
Frustrated commuters on the city centre-Pumula suburb route found themselves with a silver lining to their transport woes when five Zupco buses were introduced overnight to ferry them to work and home.
A monopoly is about to collapse and kombi operators are slowly losing their grip on a public transport system they have sunk their claws onto for so many years, in the process throwing good business principles out of the window.
The introduction of more Zupco buses is a welcome relief for long frustrated commuters who have literally been treated like punching bags by kombi operators whose solution to every challenge in their business operations is to increase fares.
The State public transporter plans to introduce 77 buses to ply different routes in Bulawayo.
“The arrangement that we’ve made with players in the transport industry is to make sure that we build capacity to carry people to and from work. We are looking at a capacity of 72 buses to start off with and going forward we will build our capacity so that we cover every angle of the commuting public,” said Evaristo Madangwa, the Zupco acting chief executive officer.
The re-introduction of Zupco buses is a development that will force kombi operators to reduce their fares due to the competition.
Commuters want a reliable and affordable transport system and competition is good for business. It is our hope that such interventions are no only limited to urban areas but also spread out to outlying areas where commuters are still at the mercy of some unscrupulous operators.
Online Reporter