Three new upcountry bus stations slated to ease jams at Ubungo

May 17, 2017

DAR es SALAAM City Council is gearing up for three new zonal bus terminals to cater for travelers going upcountry -- at Mbezi Luis, Boko Dawasa and Kongowe or Vikindu areas.

Deputy Minister in the President’s Office, Regional Administration and Local Governments (TAMISEMI), Mr Selemani Jaffo said the move was aimed at de-congesting the existing Ubungo terminal which is already overwhelmed by upcountry-bound traffic.

He was reacting to a basic question by Zaynab Vulu (Special Seats-CCM) who wanted to know measures taken by the government to supplement services of the over-burdened Ubungo terminal.

According to Mr Jaffo, the Mbezi Luis terminal would cater for southern highlands regions and their neighbouring countries; Boko Dawasa for Eastern and Northern zones plus their neighbouring countries and Kongowe/Vikindu for Southern zone regions.

Mbezi Luis, sitting on 68,000 sq metres would cater for buses plying between Dar es Salaam and Mbeya, Rukwa, Iringa, Ruvuma, Njombe, and Ruvuma.

It will also cater for Mwanza, Shinyanga, Kagera, Mara, Geita, Simiyu, Dodoma, Singida, Manyara, Tabora, Kigoma, Katavi and neighbouring countries of DRC, Burundi, Rwanda, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Spanning 63,000 sq metres, Boko Dawasa terminal will serve Arusha, Kilimanjaro and Tanga regions and neighbouring regions of Kenya and Uganda.

He added that the Kongowe/Vikindu terminal would cater for Lindi, Mtwara and Ruvuma regions. Answering supplementary questions from Ms Vulu and Abdallah Bulembo (Nominated), Mr Jaffo said that discussions were underway on whether the last terminal would be built at Kongowe or Vikindu; the former was already available for the project but not spacious enough.

He also reminded all councils that all payments, be it at bus terminals or elsewhere, must be done electronically. Chipping in, the Minister, George Simbachawene noted that such terminals need heavy capital outlays and were potential avenues for incomes.

He therefore called for an inclusive approach such as Public-Private Partnership (PPP).