Pregnant women buses  Nicco Movers Limited Sacco photo
 

In Nairobi, pregnant women, the elderly, and persons with disabilities will now be permitted to board specific matatus without having to wait in line.



This emerges after Nicco Movers Limited Sacco continued to improve their services in an attempt to assist Kenya's matatu industry run more smoothly.

The Sacco, which operates 60 buses on the Githurai-Nairobi route, is rearranging seats to accommodate pregnant women, the elderly, and physically challenged passengers.

Seven seats on each of the 51-seater buses have been adjusted to provide extra leg room for disadvantaged passengers.



The Sacco has changed 14 buses so far, though according to management, this will be the case with their whole new fleet.



“We adjusted three sets of seats near the door. Two sets on the left side which accommodates two people per set and one on the right accommodating three passengers,” Simon Mwathiki, the Sacco operations manager said.



This means the bus's capacity will be decreased from 51 to 46 seats, allowing even crutch-wielding commuters to board.



The decision was driven, according to Mwathiki, by obstacles and concerns from the elderly and crippled.



"It was difficult for them to board the buses, especially during rush hour." Previously, passengers were forced to cram into the rear seats, and those using crutches had little leg room, but now, with these adjustments, they have space near to the entrance at no additional cost," he added.



When the bus is full and there are few or no people scheduled to sit there, the vulnerable passengers board the vehicle without queuing, and the seven seats are the last to be filled.



The action is in line with a law approved two years ago by the Nairobi City County Assembly.



All public transportation vehicles must have dedicated seats adjacent to the alighting entrance for passengers with physical disabilities or special needs, according to the Nairobi City County Transport Act, 2020.



According to the legislation, 17-seaters will have one seat, 18-35-seaters will have two special seats, and those with more than 35 passengers will have three allocated seats.

 

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