Public Transport Fares Shoot High As People Run To villages In Fear Of Lockdown

Government Justifies Increase In Public Transport Fares

Posted by: Kyeyune Andrew Jonathan in Uganda news April 25, 2022

The Ministry of Works and Transport has justified the increment in public transport fares hence revealing that they will not intervene.

Earlier last week, the Federation of Uganda Taxi Operators (UTOF) announced that they would revise their public transport fares across the country. They made this conclusion in relation to the increased prices of fuel in the country.

According to UTOF, taxi operators were going to make certain adjustments in price ranges of Shs 500 to shs 5000. This will depend on the distance.

Fred Byamukama, the Minister of State for Works and Transport, noted that they knew about these changes. However, they wouldn’t intervene because they are ‘justifiable’.

“The proposed increment in fares has been reviewed to ensure that they are not exploitative. The Ministry is therefore aware of justifiable increments in transport fares basing on the prevailing cost of fuel,” Byamukama said.

According to him, the agreed adjustments include an increase of Shs 500 for trips within city boundaries, Shs 1000 for trips beyond 35kms and Shs 2000 for trips between 40kms and 100kms.

“There is an increase of Shs 3000 for trips beyond 130kms and an increase of Shs 5000 for trips beyond 140kms,” Byamukama said.

He also said the government is mandated to regulate and monitor public transport. However, it should at no point dictate transport fares which are greatly determined by the forces of demand and supply.

The government will continue to monitor the charges to ensure that they are not exploitative.

The statement comes at a time when many Ugandans are complaining about the high cost of living fueled by a sharp rise in utilities.

The government said that the increasing prices are beyond internal control. This is because most of the factors that led to this predicament are majorly external.

Check Also;

This is not a Paywall, but Newslex Point's journalism consumes a lot of time, hard-work and money. That's why we're kindly requesting you to support us in anyway they can, for as little as $1 or more, you can support us .

Please use the button below to contribute to Newslex Point, Inc. using a credit card or via PayPal.