It is 11:00am on Thursday in downtown Kigali, and at the bus station, commuters are queuing up to board a bus as an official from the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA) explains how a new public transport payment system works.

The pay-per-distance fare system for public buses, which started on December 4 with the Kabuga-Downtown and Nyabugogo-Kabuga routes, will be rolled out to all routes in Kigali before the end of the year.

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Commuters must first top up Rwf787 on their card for the trip from downtown to Kabuga.

A passenger taps in on the meter when boarding the bus and tap out at the end of their trip to be able get the unused fare.

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Clementine Uwitonze, a security guard who works downtown, was among the commuters. Two reporters from The New Times were also among the commuters to experience the new transport fare payment system.

Uwitonze, the reporters, and a few more people got off from the bus at a stop known as ‘Kuri 15.’ Each of them had a balance of Rwf206 remaining.

Today, Uwitonze, who had been traveling downtown every morning and evening spending the whole Rwf787, spent less on the trip, thanks to the introduction of the distance-based fare system.

"Paying the transport fare based on the distance I traveled is satisfying for me,” she said. "It is a sigh of relief for a security guard with a monthly salary of around Rwf60, 000 because most people with such low incomes even spend the day without lunch.”

Saving Rwf206 in the morning and Rwf206 in the evening is a small increase in savings which can also facilitate transport in the following month, she explained.

According to Uwitonze, saving Rwf416 per day means over Rwf12, 000 per month, "which is not little money for a low-income earner.”

Anasthasie Uwinshuti, a businesswoman regularly traveling from Downtown to Kabuga was also upbeat about the new system.

"I paid the usual fare because I traveled the entire route from Downtown to Kabuga. But I’m thrilled with this system because I know that next time, I’ll only pay for the distance I travel, unlike before when you were charged for the whole route regardless of where you got off.”

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Challenges

For those already familiar with the system, enthusiasm was palpable.

For others using it for the first time, they appeared intrigued, trying to grasp the details of what many described as a timely change.

Nowever, not all experiences went smoothly.

In one instance, a passenger attempting to test the refund process was unable to retrieve their unused balance.

The New Times has learned that while a passenger must tap out at the end of their trip to avoid being charged for the full route, the system might not work properlu for some passengers.

The bus driver said that such cases were recorded since the launch of the new system. Officials at RURA acknowledged the issue, noting that it was among the hitches being documented during the pilot phase.

Each passenger is encouraged to use their own card, as the new system no longer permits multiple passengers to share a single card—a common practice under the previous setup.

With the refund mechanism, passengers who decide to change their destination or cancel their trip can receive a refund.

However, a base fee of Rwf182—the equivalent of one kilometer—is deducted to discourage unnecessary card-tapping and route changes.

"If you tap your card and then cancel your trip, you’ll pay for one kilometer. It’s a fair charge designed to minimize unnecessary movements," explained Beata Mukangabo, Head of Transport Regulations at RURA.