BCX TANZANIA LAUNCHES ELECTRONIC TICKETING SYSTEM FOR DALADALA COMMUTERS

Daladala commuters in Dar es Salaam will no longer worry about carrying cash, thanks to the introduction of the electronic fare collection system launched by BCX Tanzania under its Uhuru Pay product.

Tanzania becomes the fourth country in Africa where this payment service becomes fully operational after Malawi, Zambia and Mozambique that have already started using it.

The newly introduced electronic ticketing system is meant to give the new option to Daladala commuters in Dar es Salaam to pay bus fare by using a card. As a pilot project the system will first be introduced on the Tegeta Nyuki and Kivukoni route before extending to other areas in the City.

Speaking at a press briefing in Dar es Salaam, The BCX Tanzania Managing Director, Mr. Seronga Wangwe said the introduction of Uhuru Pay aims to offer convenience when it comes to paying the bus fare for the daladala commuters in the City while also ensuring that passengers board them in a calm and peaceful manner, consequently the bus owners will have their return on investment due to more control and visibility of the revenues collected.

“All Daladala commuters in Dar es salaam will no longer worry about carrying cash or the inconvenience of conductors not having enough change for them once they use our ‘Uhuru Pay’ card to pay for bus fare when boarding the daladalas, and customers of the buses will also be able to get different offers onto their cards such a free trip rides and bonuses.

He believes that this new system will be embraced by Tanzanians as their habits change and embrace other forms of payments other than cash. This is something that developed nations have done for decades now, but the recent trends of payments through mobile money and the use of cards show that the Uhuru Pay card is something that Tanzanians now need to complement their lifestyles.

For his part, the BCX Tanzania Sales and Marketing Senior Manager, Ebenezer Massawe said, the project has been under development for quite some time, and has been through various phases of testing to ensure that all components are working as required.

“The system has now been tested thoroughly, and is fully compliant with all laws and regulations, as well as requirements of all the parties involved. We are now ready for the roll out,” said Mr. Massawe.

Describing how the system works, Mr. Massawe said that, the electronic system will be synchronized with the owners so that they can directly monitor the daily ticket sales which is what owners are missing as of today business model.

He said commuters have the option of paying using the Uhuru Pay card which will be available at the various daladala stations in the city.

He also made it clear that Uhuru Pay is BCX’s product, which incorporates financial solutions provided by the company to its clients to ease the burden on cash collection management as well.

“As for now the Uhuru Pay card will be used for Daladala commuter services but with time, more services will be accessed using the card including Payment for shopping in supermarkets, Car fuel, sending money to all networks and bank accounts, bill payments for services like LUKU, DAWASCO, NHC, AzamTV, ZUKU, Startimes, DSTV, etc” he said.

SUMATRA’s Manager for Roads, Technical, Safety & Environmental Regulation, Geoffrey Silanda said the system will enhance revenue collections as commuter bus owners will have to pay government taxes in accordance with their daily ticket sales.

“The government has not been collecting enough revenues from the commuter services and so we decided to support this new technology so as to ensure that the Government collects enough taxes,” said Silanda, adding that once the system is operational drivers as well as conductors will enter into the formal sector.

He added that through the new system, it will be easier to control traffic on the registered routes as the system can clearly tell which route is crowded and which one is free.

Speaking on behalf of bus owners, Emmanuel Mlaponi, The Executive Director of Christiania Group of companies appealed to more bus owners to support ‘Uhuru Pay’ If at all they are going to experience the return on their investment as well as more control and visibility of the revenues.