Commuters have started to shun the Zimbabwe United Passengers Company (ZUPCO) following a spike in fares thereby giving pirate commuter omnibus (kombis) a competitive advantage.
The Chronicle reports that the pirate kombis are today (Thursday 1 July 2021) back in full force as some commuters shunned the ZUPCO buses which increased fares by 100 percent starting today.
Fares rose from $30 to $60 and $60 to $80, in that order, for buses and kombis for shorter routes.
Meanwhile, the mshikashika kombis are still charging $50 per single trip.
The Chronicle further reports that there was a rare sight of buses soliciting for passengers in most western areas this morning.
One mshikashika driver told Chronicle that they were not planning to hike their fares while Zupco has said the fare hike was necessary to maintain viability. Zupco chief executive officer Mr Everisto Madangwa said:
_High operational costs and frequent price hikes taking place in the country has forced us to increase the fares to ensure the company improves service delivery as well as cushion its costs. What the public should however note is that we do not increase our prices all the time, instead we do it after a period of time._
The move is likely to worsen the public sector transport crisis in the country since the ZUPCO is the only company allowed to ferry members of the public.
The government last year banned private-owned kombis from the roads saying it was a measure to stop the spread of the coronavirus and to bring order in cities.
Since then, there has been a huge shortage of buses and or kombis since private-owned kombis were dominating the sector.
More: Pindula News; The Chronicle