Global Transport Atlas

GTA-138 Kusumu, Kenya Cycle-based transport services

Series 1 - Global Transport Notes

Youth club cycle operators ofhe Ngware Bicycle Transporters Youth Group, 2005 (photo: Naboth Okoth)

Kenya, bicycles

Cycle-based transport services in Kenya The Ngware Bicycle Transporters Youth Group In 1994, four young unemployed school graduates in the western Kenya city of Kisumu set up a new group. Their aim was to provide transport services for cargo and pedestrians, using bicycles - a type of service which has come to be known as "boda-boda". Today this group has grown to include 34,400 stakeholders and their families. In Kisumu itself, according to UN Habitat, the share of road transport is made up of : 48% motor vehicles 40% boda boda 5% hand carts 7% pedestrians

This is a 2013 re-issue of a 2006 document in a revised format. The contents have not been updated.

Sources: Naboth Okoth (author) Robert Bartlett (Ed.)

This article describes the organisation, the vehicles and the challenges which it still has to face. September 2006 Page 1

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Global Transport Atlas Series 1 - Global Transport Notes

About the Author

The writer of this information note is Naboth Juma Okoth. He has been the chairman of the Ngware Bicycle Transporters youth group since 1997, and has also been Secretary of theKisumu Branch of Kenyas Union of the Blind since 1997. He previously worked for a company as a maintenance store manager. Mr. Okoth says that his career aspirations are To develop a full fledged business that can provide income and even job opportunities to members and other people who are less fortunate members of society. To provide support to other visually disabled persons. To furnish a business empire that can lead to rural development and transport in rural areas. Mr. Okoth is 42 years old, and married. Besides English, he also speaks Kiswahili and Dholou.

Operator with bicycle, waiting for customer. The green T-shirt is part of the special clothing worn by operators (Naboth Okoth, 2005)

1. Introduction
Kenya has a population of some 32 million and a land area of just under 600,000 sq.km. There are 8 administrative provinces, of which Nyanza is, in terms of population, the third largest. The World Bank puts the poverty level at 55%, annual gross national income is only $ 400 per person, and life expectancy only 45 years. English is an official language and is widely used for business and government purposes. Kiswahili (also called Swahili) is the other official language, and its use is promoted to encourage national unity. The city of Kisumu, in Nyanza province, is Kenya's third largest city, but even so has a population of only around 15% of that of the capital city, Nairobi. It has been described as a "pleasant, sleepy town on the shores of Lake Victoria, and is the main town in the Western Highlands. In 1901 it became the administration centre of the area with the completion of the railway line from Mombasa. For decades it was the hub of transport activity between the coast and Uganda and Western Tanganyika, but the splintering of the East African Community in 1977 cost it much of its business.

Contact: njokoth@yahoo.com

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Global Transport Atlas Series 1 - Global Transport Notes

2. The Operating Environment

Kisumu is the third largest town in Kenya owes its existence and development to transport infrastructure. The Kenya-Uganda railway line reached Kisumu in 1901 and this railway network has seen the sprouting of satellite towns such as Kibos Chiga and Kisian influencing the citys growth pattern. The town is located in the main transitional highway, linking it to the other towns and cities in neighboring countries and to the rest of Kenya by a network of roads. The road connections in the city and its suburbs also influence its growth, both in terms of human and vehicular populations, currently it is estimated to have an annual fleet growth of about 1,000 vehicles. Between 750 and 1200 vehicles are licensed every month out of which between 50 and 100 are for public service and 200 bicycles taxi are being registered also. Demand for cheap transport within the city has also led to the influx od bicycle taxis (non motorized transport) popularly known as Ngware or Boda-Boda. The Boda-Boda (Ngware ) business has developed into a major income earner particularly for the youths who cannot find formal employment. It is estimated that about 10,400 bicycles taxis serve various routes in the city. Source: Update registration by the Central Body of Kisumu Bicycle Transporters (Umbrella body). Despite its population growth and transport network, Kisumu town like other towns in the Eastern African region, is faced with various transport related challenges namely: Poor infrastrucre, insufficient transport structures, Poor planning, Lack of awareness and resources. On the benefits of low cost mobility options. Due to the fact that the current bicycle transport development was not envisaged by city planners, no commensurate provisions were made for cyclists in any form, be it bicycle tracks, foot paths or others. This has resulted in traffic congestion, road accidents and indiscriminate disposal of waste, all leading to the towns environmental degration. The situation is worsened by lack of proper city transport plans together with other factors such as governance, administration, insufficient financial resources and insufficient awareness of the benefits arising from low cost mobility options.

Operator with bicycle, waiting for customer (Naboth Okoth, 2005)

3. The Technology
The bicycle when brought from the shop, it is then dismantled into parts such as front wheel, rear wheel, breaks both front and rear, carrier, stays, seat and tyres plus tubes then there some parts added to it to make it strong. E.g. seven up, foot rest, handrest, side bell, fore and rear rim protector, mudflash, seat springs, tyre breaks and carrier seat. Forkassistant, cushion.

Parts Changed Front and rear rims: The ones bought with the bicycle are always very weak and cannot carry heavy cargo and customers. Therefore they are replaced with ones made in China (phoenix heavy duty) Tubes: These ones with the bike get burst when inflated hard. Therefore replaced with some known as Ralson or Diamond Tyres: These ones are replaced with diamond Superior or Diamond Hartex. Brakes: ones with bike are pure rubber but for more friction we cut motor-car tyres with threads inside which makes it strong and with a lot of friction. Carrier: These ones are weak and easily bends when carrying heavy load so is replaced with the ones made locally. Stays: These are weak therefore replaced with the ones made locally.

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Seat: We add cussions to make it last longer and also comfortable. Seven up: This is a new technology which pushes the drivers seat forward in order to balance the weight of the load and it made locally. Foot-rest: since these bicycles are moving long distances, the customers legs grow tired when hanging therefore we do have foot-rest at the carriersupport. Hand-rest: Since the bicycle has nothing for the customer to hold, we have introduced a pipe welded at operators seat for the customer to hold. Side bell: The bells made with bicycle are not loud enough to move heard of cattle or sheep from the road therefore we have the cover of the bell welded on a rod and placed at the front fork such that when pushed it gives very loud sound when it reaches a rolling rim. Fore and rear rim protection: Since there are so many bicycles and they can easily meet head on against the other, we have welded metals to protect the rim such that when knocked the rim does not bend, even incase of an accident. Mud flash: Theses are to protect mud from reaching the customer. Seat spring: Since it is acting like shock absorber it is usually made stiff so that it does not break even in potholes. Fork assistant: This is just to assist the fork when broken or so that it doesnt break easily. Cushion: This is for comfort to the customer.

Global Transport Atlas Series 1 - Global Transport Notes

Operator with a cargo of 150 kg of dry maize. The dimensions = 2mts length 1 mts high mts width (Naboth Okoth, 2005)

a locally made carrier (the original ones from Asia are not strong enough for loads heavier than 50 kg) a locally made cushion fixed on the carrier Some other add-ons are often used to make the transport of passengers more comfortable, such as a foot- and hand-rest. Not typical of the bodaboda but of all cyclists in Africa: when the first break-shoes are down they are replaced by locally ones cut from lorry tyres. When the first tyres and tubes are worn out you can try to replace them by solid ones (the brands can change). Many bodaboda owners are proud of their bicycle and like to decorate it a bit (mudflash ..) and like to use loud bells. Like most African cyclists, bodaboda owners often share the opinion, that the fork could be made more stable by adding a fork assistant.

Hans Schindler of Afriwheels.org adds: The type of bicycles in use are generally strong, heavy roadster standard bicycles imported from mainly India and China (Roadmaster, Hero, Phoenix ....). These arrive in CKD kits (completely knocked down) and are locally assembled. This type of bicycle is appropriate to transport heavy loads on bad roads. European/American 2nd hand bicycles are not appropriate. To transport persons there are two essential things added:

Afriwheels.org (http://www.afriwheels.org/) is a website dedicated to a discussion of the uses and needs for bicycles in Africa. The range of topics it covers includes bicycle taxis and wheelchair bikes. Page 4

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4. The Organisation
4.1 The beginning The Ngware bicycle Transport Youth Group is a brainchild of four young men who completed their education and then found themselves jobless. Their major goal was to be able to earn a living by providing both cargo and passenger services, using bicycles. They had reached this decision after realizing that the residents of the area they lived in were faced with serious transport problems, especially during rainy seasons. This area is served by a few murrum roads. These become muddy during wet seasons, thus making it almost impossible for motor vehicle transport to use them. In 1991 they set up a group in Chiga Market, which is in the eastern side of Kisumu, in Nyanza Province. The Group began with well defined objectives and strategies, Over the years, as its membership has grown from 4 persons to over 10,000, it has also had to develop a clear organizational structure. 4.2 Group Objectives 1. to create job opportunities for young people. 3. to offer efficient and effective transport services at an affordable fee and that help alleviate poverty for both parties. 4. to facilitate linkage and Networking of the bicycle enterprise with other development organization such as NGOs, CBOs, companies and many other actors who have development in mind. 5. to mobilize resources for the improvement of the welfare and living standards of its members. 6. to advocate and collaborate within and outside the enterprise 7. to foster education and medical support for the members and their families. 4.3 Group Strategies Knowledge and skill acquisition through training awareness creation and lobbying Collaboration Networking. Resource Mobilization (human and material) Advocacy Decentralization of Management Operator with a cargo of 150 kg of dry maize. The dimensions = 2mts length 1 mts high mts width (Naboth Okoth, 2005)

4.4 Growth of the Group

The group continued to grow, so that in 1994 its members sought registration from the government through the Department of Social Services.. In 2000, it became apparent that an umbrella body would have to be formed, since several sub-groups had broken away from the mother group to provide a more effective service to members. The updated and general registration which took place in 2001 showed a total membership of 7,000, and the registration update of 2005 showed a total membership of 10,000 members. The group has opened its own bank account (Co-operative Bank Kisumu Branch). Its postal address is P.O. Box 6400 Kondele-Kisumu, Kenya. The affiliate groups are represented in the umbrella body by three top officials namely: Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer. In this line the whole group is updated on day to day activities and also bring from the group to the central body any emerging problem. Page 5

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Youth club group photograph of chair persons (Naboth Okoth, 2005) These groups are growing steadily, following the lack of opportunity in the country. We have also developed different types of schemes namely Health (Community Based Health Fund) cost 20/= Pension (Pension Saving Scheme) Development Fund (D.F) Benevolent Fund (B.F.) 4.5 Hours of Operation Day shift 5:00 a.m. 6:30 p.m. Midnight shift 6:30 p.m. 12:00 Both shifts operate 7 days a week, 365 days a year cost varies cost 10/= cost 20/=

4.6 The Vehicles If the boda-boda bicycles were made in Germany it could easily qualify to be termed the two-wheeled Volkswagen. In western Kenya it is indeed the local mans car as this mode of transport proving extremely popular not only in Kisumu and its environs but also other parts of Kenya and Uganda. The bicycles are made in India, and China mostly and the cost of each piece ranges from 3,500/= to 5,500/= depending on the make and model.

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Youth club cycle operators (Naboth Okoth, 2005)

5. The Service
The main features (and advantages) of the service provided are that: it serves many different types of customer it is very flexible (basically demand-responsive, individual routing to suit customer's needs, 24 hour a day operation etc.) it is geared towards the creation of employment and wealth for both operators and customers Some aspects of the service are detailed as below: shift work - The group operate a two-shift system: a night shift and a day shift. There are many more day shift workers than night shift workers. special clothing - Workers on the day shift wear shirts which have their membership number on the back. The number is also shown on a plate at the rear of the bicycle. Operators on the night shift are also required to wear a white reflective scarf, a clearly visible number, and to have a head light on their bicycle. pick-up points - During the day, the main pick-up points / bases of operation are : main road junctions, bus-stops, market places and outside government GTA-138

buildings and other institutions. The night shift mainly work from different pick-up points. Many wait at bus stops, bars, night clubs and hotels, whilst others remain in the parking bays. Local government authorities are apparently also supposed to provide facilities for this mode of transport, such as parking bays. security - The main pick-up points / bases of operation are : main road junctions, bus-stops, market places and outside government buildings and other institutions. prices - Prices for trips at night are double the day price, and each boda-boda is escorted by another bicycle and rider for security purposes. Typical amounts charged range from 10/= to 50/= depending on the distance. journey lengths - A typical journey length is 10 kilometres. The journey length vary from km to 20km whereby km is 10/= charge while 20km is 40/= charge. medical transport service - The Ngware BTYG negotiate with health providers who can do the service and be paid later. This is known as Community Based Health Fund. (C.B.H.F.)

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The whole scheme of course also provides a means of providing for the families of the stakeholders. Most of the stakeholders are married, so that there are sixteen thousand children and eight thousand partners for the direct stakeholders

two thousand, seven hundred children and partners for the indirect stakeholders. a grand total of 34,400 direct beneficiaries of the group.

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9. Challenges
The industry has been faced with many challenges, some of which are listed below:

Challenge Motor Taxi Operators These are the Group's rivals in the business, and they have been causing the Group's operators severe problems such as unnecessary hooting to scare our customers, stopping unexpectedly, causing a risk of accidents, pushing us out of the road and many more.

Possible solution Through intermediate technology in connection with UN-Habitat, the Group have held a number of consultative meetings and have come out with the idea of bicycle lanes. The programme is under Sustainable Urban Mobility (SUM) and is funded by the UN-Habitat. However the bicycle lane would have to be designed for the dimensions of the boda-boda as they are actually used. Further, this problem is not unique to Kenya. In London. Some people have set up a cycle rickshaw service for passengers, and the local taxi associations are complaining about the competition This still remains the greatest challenge to overcome since there are still no jobs in the country but the Group hope that it will be overcome in case the economy should ever be revived.

Over-supply

This industry is the only source of employment in the country that is easily obtained, so that many unemployed and school leavers try to start up in it, providing an oversupply. Some children whose parents died from HIV/ AIDS and left them without a guardian do join the industry to support their younger sisters and brother and as result the Group say this is the greatest challenge they are facing. To minimize the risk of accidents it is good to make clear that bicycles belong on the roads, have equal rights and should not be removed to special paths and tracks in some parts of the town. Since leaders are not paid for their services they offer, they often do not respond properly in providing services especially in urgent cases. The industry is one of a kind and for that matter there is no clear law covering it, so that the local police tend to harass them even when there is no law has been breached. Since the operators are young men who are sexually active, they are so very vulnerable to contracting this disease.

Child Labour

The government is now working out ways to overcome this problem.

Security, accidents

Probably no African town is able to finance and maintain proper bicycle lanes in the long run because they have other priorities. This attitude problem also exists in some European countries. The Group has started several projects which will assist in paying the leaders an allowance if they have gone to give advice and time to members. The organization has presented a request to the area MP and the councillors, asking them to push this issue in Parliament.

Leadership

Police

HIV/AIDS:

We have submitted a proposal to organizations dealing with this problem, and may be provided with some support funding soon. In the meantime the group works to create awareness of the problem, to provide care for the sick and support for those who are HIV positive.

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Related resources - website Global Transport Atlas, website with country pages containing weblinks related to roads and transport.
http://globaltransportatlas.wee bly.com/index.html

Global Transport Atlas Series 1 - Global Transport Notes

Related resources - blog Comparative Geometrics, a tech blog with postings related to highway design and traffic engineering in different countries.
http://comparativegeometrics. wordpress.com/

Cover notes and Disclaimer

This is a research document. The best efforts have been made to make sure the figures are correct. However no liability can be taken for any of the details, information or analysis in this document. The layout, look and feel of this document is copyright. The photos are generally copyright of Naboth Okoth. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/

GTA documents series Global Transport Atlas is a project with two aims. One is
to encourage people around the world to share examples of how they actually use transport in their daily lives. The other is to compare and improve the design of transport infrastructure. There are the following GTA document series: Series 1 - global transport notes A collection of papers on transport infrastructure and vehicles from various countries, prepared by various authors and contributors. Typical size 2 to 3 pages. Series 3 - discussion papers

History and Change log

The original version of this document was published in September 2006. This version has a different layout but the text remains unchanged and has not been updated.

Papers with arguments and ideas on different aspects of modern transport and transport infrastructure. Series 4 - comparative geometrics Working papers which look at different aspects of highway infrastructure design and compare values from different countries. Series 7 - Dimensions of vehicles Transport infrastructure has to be defined with an idea of the size and types of vehicle which will use it. This series looks into the dimensions of different types of vehicle at different periods of time. Papers include technical discussion notes and example dimensions. Typical size 20 pages and more.

Contact
We welcome comments on this paper, and also on new developments in other countries in this field. Email: global.transport.atlas@gmail.com

About the editor

Robert Bartlett, Germany - is an experienced transportation and urban development studies engineer with over 25 years of professional experience. Current engineering work: includes technical research in highway design standards and applications in areas such as urban planning and highway engineering. Interests include applied GIS.

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