The Burundian Ministry of the Interior and Public Security has announced a ban on bicycle taxis, motorbike taxis and tuk-tuks in Bujumbura taking effect on Monday.
The popular means of transportation are blamed for the majority of fatal accidents in Burundi’s economic capital.
In a tweet on social media, the ministry said the measure of respect for the new perimeter prohibiting access to tricycles, motorbikes and bicycle taxis in the centre of the city of Bujumbura comes into effect from Monday 21 March 2022.
A local administrative source and witnesses said at dawn on Monday, many armed police were posted on the various roads leading to the forbidden zone.
Until now, these 20,000 two- or three-wheeled vehicles had access to all areas of Bujumbura, the largest city in the country with 1.2 million inhabitants, except for the city centre.
In mid-February, the Minister of the Interior, General Gervais Ndirakobuca, accused them of being responsible for the “majority” of the road accidents that caused 1,300 deaths and 1,970 injuries between January 2021 and January 2022.
Two-wheelers for private use are also banned in the area – except for motorbikes with official plates or belonging to the police.
More than 600,000 people use these means of transport every day, in a city where public transport services are patchy. Customers and drivers, often young men from rural areas whose only source of income is this, will be affected.
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