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Matatu

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For the Journal for African Culture and Society, see Matatu (journal). For the rugby team, see Matatū (rugby union).

Riding in a Kenyan matatu – minibus size

In Kenya, matatu or matatus (known as mathree in Sheng)[citation needed] are privately owned minibuses used as share taxis.[1] Often decorated, many matatu feature portraits of famous people or slogans and sayings.[2] Likewise, the music they play is also aimed at quickly attracting riders.[3] Over 70% of commuter trips are taken using matatu in cities like Nairobi.[4]

Although their origins can be traced back to the 1960s, matatu saw growth in Kenya in the 1980s and 1990s, The matatu culture sprung up under the influence of widespread hip-hop music and culture by black Americans in the 1980s. By the early 2000s, the archetypal form was a (gaily decorated) Japanese microvan.[5] C. 2015, larger, bus-sized vehicles also started to be used as matatu. The name may also be used in parts of Nigeria.[6] In Kenya, this industry is regulated,[7] and such minibuses must, by law, be fitted with seatbelts[8] and speed governors.[9][8] Present regulation may not be sufficient deterrent to prevent small infractions[10] as even decoration may be prohibited.[9] Kenya has one of the "most extensive regulatory controls to market entry",[11] and a matatu worker can be pulled from the streets simply for sporting too loud a shirt.[12]

They may ply set routes,[13] display this route,[10] run from termini,[8][14] run both inter and intra-city,[13][15] and may stop along said route to purchase or collect money from passengers.[16] In addition to a driver, matatu may be staffed by a conductor,[17] locally known as a makanga or manamba or donda. As of 1999, they were the only form of public transport available in Nairobi, Kenya, although in 2006 and 2008 this was no longer the case. Over the years, stiff competition[18] is being experienced from bus-sharing applications such as SWVL.[19]

Etymology

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Brightly-coloured matatus in Mombasa in 2022
A matatu painted with images of American rapper A$AP Rocky in central Nairobi in 2021

The name derives from a Swahili or Kikuyu colloquialism meaning "three".[20][21] One explanation is that three 10 cent coins made up the typical 30 cent fare in the 1970s.[20][22] There is no universally agreed opinion on an origin for the name, however, alternatively one news source suggests its origin lies in the Kikuyu language,[23] specifically from the Kikuyu phrase 'mang’otore matatu' meaning 30 cents.

Public perception

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At times in Kenya, the matatu has been associated with criminality or reckless driving. Writes one academic, "by the end of the 1990s, matatu operators were typically viewed... by Kenyans of all ranks as thugs who exploited and mistreated passengers and participated in gang or mafia-like violence."[20]

In the early 2000s, struggle over control of matatu routes by informal groups led to violence,[24] and contemporary headlines highlight the fact that matatu were perceived as unsafe. These include a 2002 article titled "riding in Kenya's taxi vans is [a] death-defying experience"[25] and another from 1999 proclaiming that the "menace of deadly matatus [is] to be curbed."[23] Mistreatment of passengers has also been reported and includes: "verbal and physical abuse, theft, hijacking, ...sexual harassment, beatings, and rape."[26] Corruption in the matatu industry is exacerbated by the prevalent practice of bribery, as matatu operators are forced to pay regular bribes to Kenyan police officers in order to avoid their vehicles being impounded and penalties.[27]

Kenyan regulation

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A matatu with luggage on top near Voi in 2022

Matatu were explicitly deemed legal in 1973, but it was only in 1984 that even the most basic regulatory framework was constructed for matatu, when licensing and inspections were mandated.[5]

Today, Kenya has been described as having extensive regulatory controls, and a matatu worker can be pulled from the streets simply for sporting too loud a shirt.[28] Some basic safety equipment is required; these minibuses must be fitted with seat belts and speed governors.[29] It's unclear, however, to what extent such laws are followed.

Present regulation may not be a sufficient deterrent to prevent small infractions, as even decoration may be prohibited.[30] Laws prohibiting flashy paint-jobs and eye-searing colors were removed in 2015, and as of 2016 matatu in Kenya are brightly decorated with some operators paying upwards of US$2,000 for custom, decorative paint.[31]

In the 1990s and the 2000s, informal groups emerged managing routes and requiring matatu drivers to pay fees.[24] At times, competition over control of routes precipitated violence.[24] Today, an individual matatu must be associated with one of over 600 independent, government-registered groups known as SACCOs (Savings and Credit Cooperatives).[32]

As of late 2010, Kenyan government policy is to phase out minibus matatu in the capital city Nairobi in favour of larger buses seating twenty five or more. Currently, no new matatu vehicles can operate in Nairobi, and the existing ones will be allowed to continue serving passengers until they become completely inoperable. It could take ten years or more to ease the congestion caused by more-popular smaller minibuses, however.[33]

Environmental and health impacts

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Matatu, which are most frequently diesel vehicles, are frequently idling in urban areas, creating additional air and noise pollution.[34] In some areas, matatu drivers are actively discouraged from idling the vehicle while stopped, leading to fuel consumption and exhaust when the vehicle is not in motion.[34] Some companies are exploring electric buses as a potential replacement for the high-emission vehicles.[4] SACCOs like Citi Hoppa and Super Metro started using electric buses in 2022 that were BYD K6 leased by BasiGo.[35][36]

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In the Netflix series Sense8, Capheus, a main character who lives in Nairobi, drives the matatu Van Damn, a tribute to Capheus' favorite action star, Jean-Claude Van Damme. A matatu is also featured in an episode of the seventh season of the Netflix series Big Mouth.[37]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ For Kenya and neighbouring nations, see Kenya's Taxi Vans Are Packed and Perilous nytimes.com, 24 April 1988
    • For private ownership, see In Nairobi, Kenya puts brakes on its runaway success csmonitor.com, 28 June 1999
    • For matatu as minibuses, see Kenya (page 383) Tom Parkinson, Max Phillips, Will Gourlay. Lonely Planet, 2006. 416 pages. 1740597435, 9781740597432.
    • For past use of pick-up trucks, see Have You Ever Taken A Matatu? Archived 25 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine glpinc.org. and "Field notes: a matatu, a bike and a walk" Schatz, Enid. Contexts Vol. 2, No. 3 (SUMMER 2003), pp. 58-59
    • For past use of estate cars, see Muyia, Nafukho. "The Forgonen Workers" (PDF). Social Science Research Report Series, no. 18. Organization for Social Science Research in Eastern and Southern Africa. p. 7. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
  2. ^ For portraits, see Nairobi Today: the Paradox of a Fragmented City; Hidden $ Centz: Rolling the Wheels of Nairobi Matatu. Mbugua wa-Mungai. (page 376) edited by Helene Charton-Bigot, Deyssi Rodriguez-Torres. African Books Collective, 2010. 404 pages. 9987080936, 9789987080939.
  3. ^ DJ Edu (21 February 2015). "The buses you choose because of their music". Radio 1Xtra. BBC. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  4. ^ a b "The matatus of Nairobi: A necessary bane". www.downtoearth.org.in. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  5. ^ a b Mutongi, Kenda (2017). Matatu: A History of Popular Transportation in Nairobi. University of Chicago Press. pp. 7–8. ISBN 978-0-226-47142-6.
  6. ^ "The Boda-Boda Boom – Part Two". The Boda Boda Boom. 1 March 2016. 6 or 7 minutes in. BBC.
  7. ^ In Nairobi, Kenya puts brakes on its runaway success csmonitor.com, June 28, 1999.
  8. ^ a b c Kenya (p. 383). Tom Parkinson, Max Phillips, Will Gourlay. Lonely Planet, 2006. 352 pp. 1740597435, 9781740597432.
  9. ^ a b Nairobi Today: the Paradox of a Fragmented City; Hidden $ Centz: Rolling the Wheels of Nairobi Matatu. Mbugua wa-Mungai. (p. 371). edited by Helene Charton-Bigot, Deyssi Rodriguez-Torres. African Books Collective, 2010. 404 pp. 9987080936, 9789987080939.
  10. ^ a b Nairobi Today: the Paradox of a Fragmented City; Hidden $ Centz: Rolling the Wheels of Nairobi Matatu. Mbugua wa-Mungai (p. 367). edited by Helene Charton-Bigot, Deyssi Rodriguez-Torres. African Books Collective, 2010. 404 pp. 9987080936, 9789987080939.
  11. ^ Kumar & Barrett, Stuck in Traffic (2008), p. 17. Archived 2012-09-17 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ Rodriguez-Torres, Deyssi; Charton-Bigot, Helene (2010). Nairobi Today: The Paradox of a Fragmented City. African Books Collective. ISBN 978-9987-08-093-9.
  13. ^ a b Kenya (p. 382). Tom Parkinson, Max Phillips, Will Gourlay. Lonely Planet, 2006. 352 pp. 1740597435, 9781740597432.
  14. ^ Nairobi Today: the Paradox of a Fragmented City; Hidden $ Centz: Rolling the Wheels of Nairobi Matatu. Mbugua wa-Mungai. (p. 374), edited by Helene Charton-Bigot, Deyssi Rodriguez-Torres. African Books Collective, 2010. 404 pp. 9987080936, 9789987080939.
  15. ^ Negotiating social space: East African microenterprises (p. 69). Patrick O. Alila, Poul O. Pedersen. Africa World Press, 2001. 353 pp. 0865439648, 9780865439641.
  16. ^ For set routes, see Kenya (page 382) Tom Parkinson, Max Phillips, Will Gourlay. Lonely Planet, 2006. 352 pages. 1740597435, 9781740597432.
  17. ^ Nairobi Today: the Paradox of a Fragmented City; Hidden $ Centz: Rolling the Wheels of Nairobi Matatu. Mbugua wa-Mungai. (page 371) edited by Helene Charton-Bigot, Deyssi Rodriguez-Torres. African Books Collective, 2010. 404 pages. 9987080936, 9789987080939.
  18. ^ Ride sharing applications disrupt matatu industry in Kenya, see
  19. ^ SWVL site
  20. ^ a b c Thugs or Entrepreneurs? Perceptions of matatu Operators in Nairobi, 1970 to the Present. Kenda Mutongi. Africa: Journal of the International African Institute Vol. 76, No. 4 (2006), pp. 550
  21. ^ Edward Harris. "Matatu buses add color, entertainment to Kenya's rutted roads." Sunday Gazette-Mail. Gazette Daily Inc. 2007. HighBeam Research. 13 June 2015
  22. ^ McKinley Jr., James C. (16 April 1996). "Nairobi Journal;Take (On) the Minibuses, if You Dare". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  23. ^ a b Otani, Robert. "Menace of Deadly Matatus to Be Curbed." African Business. IC Publications Ltd. 1999. HighBeam Research. 6 June 2015
  24. ^ a b c A City under Siege: Banditry & Modes of Accumulation in Nairobi, 1991–2004. Musambayi Katumanga. Review of African Political Economy Vol. 32, No. 106, Africa from SAPs to PRSP: Plus Ca Change Plus C'est la Meme Chose (Dec., 2005), pp. 505-520
  25. ^ "Riding in Kenya's taxi vans is death-defying experience." Chicago Tribune (Chicago, IL). Tribune. 2002. HighBeam Research. 6 June 2015
  26. ^ "No Mercy, No Remorse": Personal Experience Narratives about Public Passenger Transportation in Nairobi, Kenya. Mbugua wa Mungai and David A. Samper. Africa Today. Vol. 52, No. 3 (Spring, 2006), pp. 51-81
  27. ^ "Fuel Prices And Corruption Are Hitting Kenya's Public Transport Hard | STP News". 6 June 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  28. ^ For extensive Kenyan regulatory control, see Stuck in Traffic; Urban Transport in Africa (page 14) Ajay Kumar & Fanny Barrett. Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic in co-operation with the World Bank, January 2008. Draft Final Report.
  29. ^ Kenya (page 383) Tom Parkinson, Max Phillips, Will Gourlay. Lonely Planet, 2006. 352 pages. 1740597435, 9781740597432.
  30. ^ For regulation as insufficient deterrent, see Nairobi Today: the Paradox of a Fragmented City; Hidden $ Centz: Rolling the Wheels of Nairobi Matatu. Mbugua wa-Mungai. (page 367) edited by Helene Charton-Bigot, Deyssi Rodriguez-Torres. African Books Collective, 2010. 404 pages. 9987080936, 9789987080939.
  31. ^ "Inside Africa" CNN International 25 October 2016
  32. ^ For requirement to associate, see "Kamwaro on Matatu Sacco". Standard Digital. 16 February 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
    • For number of SACCOs and government registration, see "REGISTERED SACCOS AND COMPANIES" (PDF). National Transport and Safety Authority. Government of Kenya. 13 January 2015. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
  33. ^ Ngirachu, John (31 December 2010). "New rules to rein in wild sector". Daily Nation. Nation Media Group. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  34. ^ a b "Nairobi matatus' odd engine idling culture pollutes, harms health". UNEP. 19 December 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  35. ^ "Citi Hoppa, East Shuttle get electric buses". Nation. 10 March 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  36. ^ "Super Metro gets first electric bus". The Star. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  37. ^ "The International Show". Big Mouth. Season 7. Episode 6. 20 October 2023. Netflix.
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