Bus Rapid Transport short of 165 buses, CAG report shows

Dar es Salaam. The Bus Rapid Transit project has a shortage of 165 buses.

It was supposed to have 305 buses in the first phase of the project, the 2017/18 audit report by Controller and Auditor General (CAG) shows.

According to report submitted to Parliament in Dodoma on Wednesday, April 10, 2019 by CAG Mussa Assad, the Usafiri Dar es Salaam Rapid Transit (Udart) deployed a fleet of 140 buses, equivalent to 45.9 per cent of the required number of buses.

“The shortage has led to delayed transportation of commuters and overcrowding of passengers in the buses. Even depreciation is expected to be higher than projected because buses carry more passengers than their normal capacity,” reads part of the report.

The report shows that Udart operated at a loss of Sh6.78 billion loss in the first eight months of its operations that commenced on May 10, 2016.

According to report, the loss was attributed to higher expenditure made by Udart: at Sh26.57 billion compared with Sh19.78 billion in revenue collections.

“Further reviews noted that the loss was also contributed to inaccurate reporting of expenditure. While Udart reported fuel costs of Sh6.02 billion, fuel ledgers maintained by the company indicate that only Sh4.79 billion was utilized, meaning there was an overstatement of Sh1.25 billion,” reads the report.

Furthermore, report suggests that Udart paid a total of Sh750 million to a contractor for the construction of fences at Kimara, Kivukoni, Ubungo and Morocco terminals, but the project was implemented at the Kimara terminal alone at Sh241.69 million.

The report also says the government investment in Uda of 49 per cent was fruitless as it never received any dividends since its establishment.

 Reports of board of directors for 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 indicated consecutive losses as a reason for the non-payment of dividends.

“I recommend that the Dar es Salaam Rapid Transit accelerate the bidding process to increase the number of buses to meet the current needs and provide better services,” reads part of the report.

The report also recommends that the government closely monitor Udart operations to ensure the amount overstated is revised accordingly and that unaccounted money reaching Sh508.31 million is recovered. Also, appropriate legal action should be taken against responsible people.