Urban transportation fares: decisive meeting this week

Following the announcement of the Union of Urban Transportation Cooperatives (UCTU) as to the rise of transportation fares to 400 MGA starting on November 1, different local entities did not wait too long to react. One of these is the Platform for the protection of consumers’ rights which argues that in this time of crisis, the purchasing power of Malagasy households is in its lowest level and thus could not support such a rise. The Platform also states that given the low quality of the services provided by local transportation operators, a price rise in transportation is absolutely inappropriate.

The Ministry of Transportation, on its side, asserts that the UCTU’s decision to apply a rise in transportation fares is completely unilateral in that there was no prior consultation with the other involved entities. The ATT or Land Transportation Agency has already met with the Union of Suburban Transportation Cooperatives (UCTS) to address the issue. And this week, ATT has met with UCTU to discuss the issue seriously and to find a common ground that leads to a viable solution. In the meantime, the General Manager of ATT states that whether there will be a rise or not, transport operators should improve the quality of their service, especially the compliance with the established specifications book.