ZUPCO To Deploy More Buses In Harare
The Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (ZUPCO) said that it will increase the number of buses plying Harare routes starting on Wednesday evening after there was a stampede by commuters to get a seat on the buses on Tuesday evening.
The development follows the halving of ZUPCo bus fares, which coincided with a sharp increase in the price of fuel which triggered a massive fare hike by private transport operators.
In an interview with 263Chat on Wednesday morning, acting ZUPCO chief executive Evaristo Madangwa said:
Yes, we are going to be increasing our fleet. Yesterday was our first day on the road. The demand was overwhelming, so we identified that and realized people want to use our buses. We are therefore strategizing to make sure we increase our fleet.
From today onwards you will see an improvement. We are increasing our capacity as we intensify our strategy. The kombi operators are failing to match service so it’s creating demand for us and we moving in to address that.
The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) announced on Tuesday afternoon that diesel and petrol prices are now pegged at $4.89 and $4.97 respectively.
Madangwa claimed that ZUPCO will remain afloat even when charging ridiculous fares of $0.50 per trip. He said that economies of scale will see to that.
