Performance cards to tackle erratic taxi-moto operators

Operators of commercial motorcycle transport service, commonly known as taxi-moto, have said they do not have any problem with traffic police keeping track of speeding, tailgating and other illegal maneuvers that have caused the biggest number of road accidents. This follows confirmation to The New Times, yesterday, by Rwanda National Police that performance cards will be issued to taxi-moto operators by July in order to track their traffic offences. “The introduction of these cards will reduce the number of accidents on the roads and most of the riders expect to see a positive change,” said Emmanuel Mbarushimana, a taxi-moto operator in the City of Kigali. Mbarushimana said he heard drivers would have their license revoked after five traffic offences and would no longer be able to work in the taxi business, which he thought was a good idea. The cards are being introduced to encourage operators to behave more professionally and reduce road accidents, said Jean Marie Ndushabandi, spokesperson for Road and Traffic Safety department of the police. There are about 10,000 taxi-motos in the country and they are responsible for about 30 per cent of traffic accidents, he said. Accidents Speeding, drunkenness, recklessness and following a vehicle too closely are the most common causes of accidents, Traffic Police records show. The performance card will be monitored by Traffic Police, while Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Agency will track the offences. Ndushabandi said the list of offences that will be tracked and the commensurate punishments is still being finalised. But some taxi drivers say the performance cards will not change bad behaviour on on the part of taxi-moto operators. “In every profession there are people who provide good services and others who provide bad services to the public,” Ernest Dusabinmana, a taxi driver, said. “I don’t think these cards will change much.” However, he said he still thinks the cards are a good idea because they will provide an official way to track offences, rather than paying informal fines. Many Rwandans who take taxi-motos said they hadn’t heard of the performance cards. Ben Mugisha works at MTN and regularly takes taxi-moto between work and his home. The performance card initiative was unfamiliar to him but he said that it sounded like a good idea.