By Nicholas Bass
The Gambia Transport Union has urged the government of The Gambia to construct public garages purposely for the vehicles that are transporting people from one destination to another.
In an interview with The Voice, Secretary-General for the Gambia Transport Union highlighted the challenges faced by public transport drivers, passengers, and business owners.
Famara Saidy, the National Coordinator of the Gambia Transport, Agriculture, Food and Industry said the Gambian government-built public garages purposely for vehicles which are aimed at making the movement of passengers easier, but most of the passengers preferred boarding vehicles outside the public garages which have led to the high cost of fares in segments.
Mr. Saidy suggested that the government should identify a garage for commercial vehicles before putting stickers of destination on commercial vehicles so that every vehicle that is inside the public garages will be governed by the laws of the Gambia Transport Union. This he said will also make it easier for passengers to recover their lost goods through the fare tickets which bear the registration number of the vehicle they board, he lamented.
“There is no law against any driver outside the garage who may mandate passengers to pay more fares for a particular destination and if the passengers agreed to pay the fares to the driver before he takes off to any destination, the police officer has no right to seize the fares from the drivers for the passenger,” he claimed.
Saidy disclosed that if there is a public garage in Serekunda, it will ease the movement of passengers which will control the cost of fares and it will also reduce traffic blockade and the high rate of accidents in the Gambia. He revealed that the Gambia transport Union has been engaging the Kanifing Municipal Council over this for four (4) years to have garages but their request was unanswered.
Mr. Saidy, accused the Gambia Area Councils of the high cost of fares which are in segments, simply because they failed to allocate a public garage for public vehicles in Serrekunda. He emphasised that the police officers and the Gambia Area Councils should collaborate with the Gambia Transport Union to ease the work of drivers and the movement of passengers.
