How soaring car imports choke Dar's road network

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Feb 11, 2007
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How soaring car imports choke Dar's road network
By Bernard James
The Citizen

The Tanzanian road system is struggling to cope with soaring car imports, now at more than twice the level of two years ago.
In the first nine months of this year, imports reached 76,946 units, equivalent to one newly imported car for every five currently on Tanzanian roads.

The traffic police department recently estimated the total number of vehicles registered in the country at 380,000.
Some three-quarters of these vehicles are being used in and around Dar es Salaam.

Yet, even as the country's total vehicle stock rises by more than 20 per cent every 50 weeks, the commercial capital�s only significant road projects, adding fewer than 15kms of extra surface, are stalled through lack of cement.

The rest of the master plan for the city, which promises fluid road use by 2030, has yet to make it off the drawing board.

For companies operating in Dar es Salaam this is hitting profits hard. According to the Confederation of Tanzania Industries (CTI), companies in the city are reporting that traffic congestion is now cutting profits by as much as 20 per cent � as supplies get stalled, meetings get delayed and deliveries held up.

It can sometimes take 1 to 2 hours to travel just 9 kms across Dar es Salaam, compared with some 20 minutes a few years ago.

For some commuters, this is now seeing the journey to and from work consuming half as many hours as their entire working week.

The fear for many planners is that the trend is showing no signs of slowing down. Car imports rose some 40 per cent last year. But that rate of growth appears to have climbed to more like 60 per cent this year.

As recently as 5 years ago, the country was bringing in only around 20,000 cars a year, and in some years, imports were even falling.
But since 2004, the growth has been relentless.

"The trend is shocking. It is not proportional with the present road capacity," an officer at the Ministry of Infrastructure Development said.
Tanzania was not prepared for such a swelling in vehicle numbers. "We do not know how many cars are going to enter and what the right volume of investment on road infrastructure should be," he said.

The Government has sought, however, to slow the flow by making driving more expensive.

Minister for Finance Zakia Meghji sharply raised vehicle licencing fees from Sh20,000 to between Sh80,000 and Sh150,000, depending on engine capacity.

It was thought that this would discourage imports.

Other experts, such as director of studies at NI Elifadhili Mgonja, hold that there is no shortage of roads in the city.

"Most of the congestions are artificial," he said. �The road space factor is not the main factor contributing to congestion."
But a recent Japanese study on causes and solutions to Dar es Salaam roads congestion suggests the opposite. Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) team leader Junji Shibata told The Citizen recently that Dar es Salaam roads are carrying more than their capacity.

He cautions that the situation would be even worse if the level of service is not proportional to the increasing number of cars.
The Jica study team, currently providing technical assistance for the transport master plan, estimates that car ownership for Dar es Salaam would reach 489,000 by 2030.
�We cannot stop people from buying cars. What we need to do is control the use of cars and improve the roads,� he said.
The experts have also conducted a study on four major roads in Dar es Salaam. For example, shows the study, the volume of traffic on Old Bagamoyo Road per day is 12,000 while at Ali Hassan Mwinyi the volume has reached 59,500.

According to their study, the volume of traffic on Morogoro and Nyerere roads is 32,000 and 41,400 respectively.

"The volume has far exceeded the capacity of these roads but you still can use them if the road space is used more efficiently," he said.
With the fact that Dar es Salaam is now regarded as a gateway city for East African countries, Mr Shibata says, a sophisticated transport system for the city is inevitable.

"With the current situation, foreign direct investment will not come to Tanzania. We need to develop a sophisticated transport system," he stressed.

Presenting his paper at the Annual Road Convention (ARC-2007) in Dar es Salaam last week, a senior engineer in the President�s Office, Dr Masatu Chiguma, identified lack of political will as one of the main factors that account for traffic problems in Dar es Salaam.

"Law makers are rather passive to address the problem and they do not compel the Government to act," he said, adding the participation and pressure of the general public was not well represented.
 
The traffic police department recently estimated the total number of vehicles registered in the country at 380,000.

With a population of 40 million thats how many vehicles per person? I'd venyure to say it is a very small amount and yet we still can't handle it.


...an officer at the Ministry of Infrastructure Development said.
Tanzania was not prepared for such a swelling in vehicle numbers. "We do not know how many cars are going to enter and what the right volume of investment on road infrastructure should be,"....

Proudly informs the world that he is clueless and completely incompetent at his job. So if the Ministry of Infrastructure Development does not know these things who is meant to. Maybe the Japanese can help us figure this one out to.

"With the current situation, foreign direct investment will not come to Tanzania. We need to develop a sophisticated transport system," he stressed.

Along with unreliable electricity, crippling bureacracy, corruption etc. Who in their right mind would invest in TZ. But hey don't worry about those things Kikwete will visit their country and tell them what a wonderful place Tanzania is to invest and they will pour their money in. Our leaders are delusional

Presenting his paper at the Annual Road Convention (ARC-2007) in Dar es Salaam last week, a senior engineer in the President�s Office, Dr Masatu Chiguma, identified lack of political will as one of the main factors that account for traffic problems in Dar es Salaam.

"Law makers are rather passive to address the problem and they do not compel the Government to act," he said, adding the participation and pressure of the general public was not well represented.

As usual the Government displays Apathy and complacency whats new
 
Masatu, Masatu yupi, huyu wetu hapa JF?

Adili, wakubwa wakienda huko Dodoma, huko ndiko hakutafaa kabisa, maanake barabara hakuna huko; ndio maana hawapapendi.
 
Masatu, Masatu yupi, huyu wetu hapa JF?

Adili, wakubwa wakienda huko Dodoma, huko ndiko hakutafaa kabisa, maanake barabara hakuna huko; ndio maana hawapapendi.

Kwa hiyo tufanyeje sasa?
Tuendelee "Kubanana hapahapa"?
Lazima tutafute utatuzi wa kadhia hii ya msongamano.
 
same old story,mbaya sana na tatizo sio magari mengi na wasianze kutafuta mchawi au kisingizio cha foleni ni magari ..point hakuna barabara watafute wataalam na siasa pembeni wajenge mpya thats it,sio kula pesa ya vikao AKA makongamana kuhutubia utumbo tuu
 
Masatu, Masatu yupi, huyu wetu hapa JF?

Adili, wakubwa wakienda huko Dodoma, huko ndiko hakutafaa kabisa, maanake barabara hakuna huko; ndio maana hawapapendi.

No is my elder brother but sadly the paper he presented was full of pumba... to the say the least... at lack of the political will is one of the cause of traffic in the country!
 
No is my elder brother but sadly the paper he presented was full of pumba... to the say the least... at lack of the political will is one of the cause of traffic in the country!

Do they (leaders) have a will to do anything to benefits Tanzanians!? The answer so far is NO, they are still talking care of themselves, their families and close friends.
 
huwezi kuwa na nchi inayoendelea bila ya kuendeleza infrastructures!

kuongeza bei ya tax kwa wenye magari ni uonevu kwa wanyonge, na have nothing to do with conjections!
 
Salaam kwa WanaJambo wenzangu. Naona hii issue ya magari na "minyororo" kama inavyoitwa kwenye blogu ya Bwana I Michuzi ni kitu ambacho sisi hapa nyumbani tumekuwa tunafanya kosa karibu katika kila kada. Ukikuta ugonjwa, tunatibu "symptoms" na sio "cause". Imeanza na magari na mwishowe unajua itakuwa maji kwani tayari kuna tatizo kwa hiyo wakubwa wataandika ripoti na kusema "wanachi waache kutumia maji", sasa hii si sawa na kusema "msiagize magari jamani au?". Kikubwa lazima tukubali kuwa idara/wizara inayohusika na mipango miji imeshindwa kutekeleza wajibu wake. mimi naona tuangalie haya:

1. Foleni za Dar sio kwenye "main arterial roads", bali ni kwenye ule msongamano wa kuingia ndani ya jiji letu tukuka. Tumeona kuwa kwanza majengo ya zamani yanapigwa chini na kuacha nafasi kwa majengo mapya na makubwa lakini barabara ni zilezile na parking mchinjo! Kwa nini hawa wakubwa wa mipango miji wasisitize kuwa majengo hay yajengwe kule kibaha/bagamoyo ili kuwezesha baadhi ya wakazi kwenda nje badala ya wote kuingia ndani "traffic flow equalizing - counter directional flow?"

2. Wizara zote zipo Dar (well nyingi) lakini uliza zipo wapi, all around Dar CBD. Hii ina maana serikali inaishi CBD. Kidogo wizara ya Mifugo ilijitahidi kwenda maeneo ya Chang'ombe/Temeke, Ulinzi (pale upanga sio pabaya sana), Maliasili na Utalii (pale bondeni pale), well sikumbuki wizara nyingine iliyokuwa mbali. Tuangalie kuweka wizara mahali panaohitajika zaidi. Mfano rahisi chakula kingi kinazalishwa mikoa ya Iringa, Mbeya, Ruvuma, Kigoma etc, kwa nini tusipeleke wizara hii pale mahali kama Iringa?? Maliasili na Utalii - Arusha, Mifugo - Morogoro, nk?? Hii itasaidia kupunguza kidooogo msongamano wa watu mjini. India wanazo New Delhi (Serikali), Mumbai (Private/Investors), Bangalore (R&D/IT etc), Madras (Ports/agro); South Africa vilevile Jo'burg (Biashara/Investors), Pretoria (Serikali), Cape Town (Bunge/tourism),Durban (biashara/ports) and the list go on. Sisi hapa nyumbani ni kila kitu Dar es Salaam.

3. Pmoja na kwamba kila mtu anapenda kuendesha gari laki, tukumbuke kuwa kitu kikubwa kinachofanya watu waendeshe magari yao siku nenda rudi to n' fro work ni swala la usalama/reliability/comfort ya Public Transport. Hapa pazito hapa kwenye daladala aisee ni kwanza wizi, usafi, ukatizaji wa ruti, hapo hujaongelea breakdown ya vipanya vyetu mtu unaishia kuchelewa uendapo.

4. Mass Transport improvement. Kwanza sio imrpovement kwa vile haipo!!!! Hili swala ufumbuzi sio kuondoa vipanya na kuleta rapid bus system "blindly", swala ni kuangalia movement ya abiria zaidi ni wapi kwenda wapi, kisha kuangalia uwezekano wa kuetngeneza vitu vinaitwa "Hub and Spook" ambayo ita "integrate"
movement/transport ya passengers around the cities (not only Dar lazoma tunagalie na mikoa mingine especially Arusha, Mwanza, Mbeya, Dodoma ambayo inakua kwa kasi sana sasa hivi)!

5. Route improvement by providing "bypasses" and alternative routes. Mradi wa kujenga vile vibarabara vya pale sinza, kijitonyama and kule kwetu temeke ulisaidia kidogo. Lakini kununua mpini wakati jembe "main roads" ni vya zamani na halijanolewa (upgraded and incorporated in the total picture) kwangu ni ubabaishaji wa hali ya juu.

Naona nimesema mengi lakini kwa kweli inabidi tuangalia huko kwenye Jiji, Ardhi, Mipango miji nk kama kweli kuna watu wenye kujua nini kinatakiwa kufanyika. Tripu za Ulaya (study tours) hazisaidii kiti sababu unaingia unakaa siku 2/3 unaondoka na mara nyingi wenyeji wanakuonyesha mafanikio na sio short-falls za whatever you wanted to go and visit. Hakuna apendaye kuonyesha makosa bali siku zote tunapigia debe mafanikio. Siungi mkono pia swala la kusema tujifunze kwa wa Ulaya and take their plans "blindly" bali nasema tuangalie walichofanya kisha tuangalie sisi kwa UTanzania wetu (ustaarabu/mazoea/tabia) tunawezaje kubadilisha na kuuboresha to suit our requirement, suti ya mwenzio inaweza kuwa ngwabi kwako atiii!!!!

Vyuo tunavyo (R&D) projects, akili tunayo, pesa tunayo na kubwa kuliko vyote "SHIDA TUNAYO". Jamani tuamke na kuanza kufikiria nje ya boksi na tuwe more pro-active through wale mlio in power!!!!

Naomba kuwakilisha......
 
..unajua,tukiwa na watu wenye ufahamu kama wako na wakapewa majukumu,wakisaidiwa na watu wanaoamini na kufuata ufahamu kama huu,tutapunguza matatizo madogo[ambayo kutokana na uzembe yamekuwa makubwa]hapa nchini!

..waswahili ni wavivu wa kufanya kazi!ndio!hata mimi pia!sasa,wao washazoea kutafuta short cut,wakati maisha hayana short cut kwani si windows os!

..kwa ufupi hatuna barabara!tuna vichochoro tu!sasa,watu wanaona uvivu kujenga mpya na kupanua/kuboresha zilizopo wanakimbilia kutaka kuzuia magari yasiagizwe!yaliyopo yakichakaa?tutasemaje?ooh,hatuna magari,tungejua!

..mi nadhani watu waache uvivu wa kufikiri na kufanya kazi walizoajiriwa kufanya!mbona marekani wanazalisha magari kila siku na yanaendeshwa mapya kwenye barabara za new york ambako kumefurika,kila siku!
 
huwezi kuwa na nchi inayoendelea bila ya kuendeleza infrastructures!

..simply,huwezi kuwa na nchi kama huna miundombinu!na ya kwetu inaanza kuwa vichochoro!

kuongeza kiwango cha tax kwa wenye magari ni uonevu kwa wanyonge, na have nothing to do with conjections!

..short sightedness!and self serving!what a shame!
 
No is my elder brother but sadly the paper he presented was full of pumba... to the say the least... at lack of the political will is one of the cause of traffic in the country!

Very unscientific reason indeed; it looks even our members of academia in TZ have been absorbed and engulfed in the mediocre state of affairs.
 
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