As Kabul’s population has soared to an estimated 5 million, there are simply not enough Milli buses.
The acute shortage has forced people to take the more expensive taxis or “Townis” and “Saracha” (Toyota’s mini-bus and Corolla Wagon respectively) that ferry up to 10 passengers each
As Kabul’s population has soared to an estimated 5 million, there are simply not enough Milli buses.
The acute shortage has forced people to take the more expensive taxis or “Townis” and “Saracha” (Toyota’s mini-bus and Corolla Wagon respectively) that ferry up to 10 passengers each, particularly in the city’s eastern parts that are not connected by the government-run Milli buses.
Gul Agha, 55, who lives in the 12th District says, “Milli buses do not come here. For years I have been using Saracha or Townis to go into the city centre. The fare by Saracha is 30 Afs and Townis 20 Afs. The former can even cost 40 Afs, and if you get late the car would not take you even if you pay 50 Afs!”
Zia-ul-haq from Ahmad Shah Baba Mina has the same complaint. Milli buses that provide affordable transport to people do not ply in his area. “We don’t have the choice of cheap Milli buses,” he says. “The taxi drivers are not fair-minded. When they see many people waiting on roads where there are no Milli buses, they double the fares.”
Residents in areas in the west of Kabul also complain about a shortage of public buses. Najibullah Popal of Kampani works as a cook in an office. He does not hide his frustration in an interview with Killid. “There are times when I am so weary of my life,” he says. “When it gets late there are no taxis between Cinema Pamir and Kota e Sangi. People like me can wait for hours, and it would be night by the time I reach home. My family gets very worried.”
Popal wants the government to assign Milli buses on all routes. Rajab Ali, another resident of Kota Sangi, echoes his wishes. “There are only four buses for Kota Sangi,” he laments. According to some estimates, Kabul needs at least 2,500 Milli buses to meet the demands of commuters. Since the fall of the Taleban in end-2001, India, Pakistan, Italy, Japan and Iran have given Afghanistan some 3,000 buses but most of them are no longer road worthy.
Abdul Satar from Karte Sakhi complains that taxi fares are arbitrary. “One could charge 10 Afs, another 20 Afs or double that for the same distance,” he says. “Last night I could not find a car to Karte Sakhi and had to walk home.”
Commuter woes
People living in areas like Shahr e Naw, Taimani, Wazir Akbarkhan, Macroyan, airport, Qala Zamankhan, Karta-e-Nawand also in the 2nd, 4th, 9th, 10th and 16th districts are hard hit by the shortage of Milli buses. Ahmad Wali, a resident of Qowa-e-Markazin Kabul city, says that the government is indifferent to the demand to strengthen the Milli bus service. “I travel from Qowa-e-Markaz to Shahr e Naw to attend my duty. There are no buses on this route and I have to take taxis or Townis, which are expensive for me.”
Haji Sarwar Khan lives on the road to Pol e Charkhi. He says he has not ridden on the bus to the city or to his home for two years. “Milli buses and the electric buses (trams) were all a dream. Believe me I have forgotten what buses look like!” he says tongue-in-cheek. He harks back to the early ‘90s when under President Najibullah commuters had the option of taking Milli buses or mini-buses. “If you could not find the bus (Milli), you could find at least a mini bus but now even mini buses don’t exist,” he says.
Sher Agha is a resident of Khair Khana area. He commutes daily to Shahr e Naw. An apprentice in a shop, he says it is his earning that takes care of his five-member family. “The taxi-fare to and back from work comes out of the 5,000 Afs salary that I get. The money is nothing at the current cost of living,” he says.
Ahmad Nazir Rezayee who heads the Milli State Bus Service says a total of 110 buses are on the road in Kabul. “We are trying to convince India to keep its promise. (The prime minister of India has promised to give 1,000 buses to Afghanistan.) Most of the transport problems are being solved by the private sector.” He believes a city the size of Kabul needs at least 2,000 buses.
Expand the network
He says Milli buses ply on routes like Part two of Khair Khana, Karta e Naw, Nasaji, airport, Mirwais Maidan, and also inter-city services from Kabul to Maidan Shar, Paktia, Parwan, Panjsher and Rahman Mena. According to him, President Ashraf Ghani has promised to provide some one million USD “so we would be able to buy some 400-odd buses”.
Meanwhile, the leadership of the Ministry of Transport had last year promised to repair old buses. It would help reduce the difficulties of commuters in Kabul.
Minister of Transport Mohammadullah Batash says 650 of the 800 buses are off the road. At an event to celebrate National Transport and Transit Day he said he was seeking money to repair the buses.
Ghawsudin Wafa, former head of the Milli bus service told Killid that in 2011 some 400-550 buses were transporting commuters. The number has since fallen.
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