Passengers stranded at Kisii main bus stage on Tuesday. [Photo/Dennis Chacha] Passengers traveling from Kisii to Nairobi and other parts of the country have called on the government to intervene after matatus hiked fares.
Several passengers are stranded at Kisii main bus station due to high fares charged by the operators.
A passenger Wilfred Kebati said he can’t afford to pay Sh5,200 for his 3 children going back to school in Nairobi.
“I was told to pay Sh1,800 each for my three children meaning I should pay Sh5,200. My children are expected to report back to school in Nairobi on Wednesday. I only had Sh1,800 for the three, but now that I don’t have the money, they will stay at home until the fare drops,” he said.
He accused the matatu operators of hiking the fares abnormally and called on the government to help the fares to drop.
A Nyamira express matatu conductor identified only as Esimi said the hike in fares is because the number of passengers is high compared with the available vehicles.
“We don’t have many buses operating. We hiked fares to meet the daily target because NTSA banned night travels,” he said.
He noted that the fares will only drop once the number of passengers decreases.