The Lower Eastern Matatu Owners’ Association has issued directives to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Speaking in Machakos on Thursday, the association’s leaders gave guidelines that aim at reducing congestion in their vehicles. Led by chairman Stephen Mutuku, they said they had been cleared to resume operations from Friday.
“We want to assure our customers that we will follow the safety guidelines put in place to offer a safe and pleasant experience. From today, it is expected that people will adhere to the directions of the PSV operators,” Mutuku said.
They held a press conference soon after a meeting with Machakos county commissioner Esther Maina and other departmental heads during which they deliberated on operation rules.
Every matatu will be required to have a register of its passengers detailing their names, ID number, seat number, phone number and points of departure and destination. Every passenger will have to produce his or her national ID card.
“The matatus should have sanitiser, waste bins and every passenger must wear a face mask,” Mutuku said.
“To reduce the risk of transmission in our public transport systems, we encourage as much as possible that passengers observe high levels of hygiene.”
He said it will be mandatory for passengers to wear face masks all through the journey, failing which they will pay a fine of Sh20,000 in cases where a vehicle risks losing its operating licence.
Mutuku said all the public service operators are expected to clean and disinfect their vehicles at the end of each trip. Matatu crews will have to display their contacts and emergency contacts and report any suspected case of Covid-19, and they will have a thermal gun to take the passengers’ body temperatures, among other measures.