Even At $0.30 ZUPCO Will Make Profit, Others Overprice The Transport - Government Official

The government is adamant that ZUPCO is profitable despite a 50 percent reduction in bus fares. Whilst all local urban routes now cost 50 cents from $1, the company charges, in that order, $0.75 and $1 for a distance of up to 30km and 40km.

Professor Amon Murwira, acting minister of Local Government, Public Works, and National Housing said transport is actually overpriced in the country. Professor Murwira said:

With this card there is no need for the customer to carry cash anymore. You will be having the card which has money in advance and then you can use it every time. It therefore means 0.50 cents, according to calculation, can make a big bus make profit. The transport in this country is overpriced. We are proving through technology that we can have proper prices. So, I think that is basically the issue of introducing efficiencies using technology at Zupco. This is why we say Zupco will make profit even at 0.30 cents.

He added that fuel prices had no direct bearing on the bus fares. Murwira also said that the vision is to transform into a situation whereby business does not over-profiteer or under profiteer based on the efficiency of their collection system.

Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Ziyambi Ziyambi added that the government was assuming its role of a public protector.

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