The newly-introduced route licensing scheme has yet to achieve the desired outcomes along the Westfied-Banjul Highway as its ramifications could be seen in crowded car parks and increased travel time.
The Westfield-Banjul and Banjul- Westfield car parks continue to be inundated by struggling commuters on daily basis thanks to the disproportionality of demand and supply.
Taxis and the seven-passenger commercial vehicles were thin on the ground for the past few days.
The sheer number of commuters, who head to Westfield or Banjul-Westfield car parks during rush hours, could not be accommodated by commercial vans and the GTS buses that were far and few in between.
“I am just lucky to hitchhike to Banjul today. Commuting to and from Banjul has now become nightmarish,” explained a civil servant.
“Taxi drivers are now demanding up to D300 for one-way trip to Banjul. This is incomprehensible. I think Gambia government must do something about this and now,” bricklayer Ousman Jagne told JollofNews when approached for comment on the situation.
“We decided to park our vehicles because the new scheme do not give any assurance of return on investment,” remarked taxi driver Musa Nying.
Meanwhile, many commuters have praised the government for adopting measures aimed at restoring sanity to the commercial transport sector.
Before the introduction of the route licensing scheme, travel from one point to another in the Greater Banjul Area was a nightmare for many.
Commuters were made to pay double or triple fares for a particular route, leading to an uproar in the commuter community.
Criticized by many commercial vehicle drivers and hailed by many commuters as the right thing, the route licensing scheme has been apparently bringing forth some unintended consequences.
