Taking public transport in Africa is usually like taking life into your own hands. It’s more of a white knuckle ride than a rollercoaster at Alton Towers.
In Uganda the main form of transport is the motorbike or boda-boda. So called because they used to go from border to border. Boda-boda are champions in defying physics. Men in wellies and rag shirts ferry everyone and everything. Five people, sofas, cows, a bakery or even a pig or two. Everything is transported by boda. Helmets are a rarity. Wing mirrors too.
In Africa ‘taxis‘ are often shared. They depart once full, regardless of how long that means waiting. In Uganda, these are mainly clapped-out old mini-buses. They are licensed to take 14 passengers. That doesn’t include babies, chickens or the bus conductor. You squeeze up until you can squeeze no more. Five plus babies on a seat for 3… who’s counting right?!
Licensing is a complication no-one seems to bother with, regardless of which side of the law you are on. Self-taught, un-regulated drivers ply the streets for custom. Some roads are so potholed it is difficult to do much damage. But on the main roads, they charge forwards overtaking everything in their wake. Time is money! It is recommended to sit at the back in case of a head-on collision. Better if you can’t see what’s coming.
In Malawi shared taxis are actually cars but they operate on the same principle. Old bangers is probably the best description. Indicators don’t work? The door handle is nothing more than a coat hanger? Why worry about such trivial inconveniences? Finding a taxi without a cracked windscreen is also a challenge. And I don’t mean a chip from a rogue stone. I mean a full-blown spiders web which could shatter at any moment.
Seat belts are put on immediately before a police road block. No-one seems to see the irony that the rest of the car is in danger of falling apart.
Roads in Malawi are in much better condition than Uganda (fewer bribes?). There are sign posts and even road markings. Although that seems a waste of money when no-one pays any attention. Cutting the bend on every blind corner or overtaking on the crest of a hill, they have nerves of steel. Or perhaps it’s because they haven’t bothered with a driving license either….?
Next week I am setting off to see the rest of Malawi for a few days. I’m hiring a car!