Minibus solves many daily problems for Male residents

Ali Hussain, who lives in Villimale, has to ferry his two children studying in Imaduddin School on a daily basis. It is a great difficulty for him to find taxis near the Villimale ferry terminal and near Imaaduddin school, every day of the year. Ali makes this sacrifice for the sake of his children. 

Ali's troubles have come to an end on Monday. The national transport system being developed by the government under the Raajje Transport Link (RTL) has made it easier for Ali and his children to travel with the minibus service launched by MTCC in Male' City today.

Ali only had to take his two children to the Ameenee Magu bus stop near Imaduddin School. He has had to spend a long time hailing taxis like a hitchhiker before. It took him 4 minutes riding down Ameenee Magu to the Villimale’ ferry terminal on  the minibus. His hour-long journey was shortened to about 15 minutes. The great sacrifice he has been doing for his children has finally been elevated.

"This service is much needed and very helpful for me. I will definitely use it everyday. I hope that this service will continue this way," said Ali.

The bus continued on its route and made its scheduled stop near the Youth Centre in Maafannu ward. The next passenger to get on board the bus was Ismail Mohamed, who had arrived in Male from F. Nilandhoo. He was on his way to visit the Lonuziyaaraiy Park. He also said that having the mini bus for rides makes things very easy for him, as he can travel to see different parts of the capital city now. With the low fares taken from buses, he said he is able to save a lot of money.

"Previously, I’ve had to pay roughly MVR 30 whenever I wanted to get somewhere. The bus facilitates mobility for people like us, because we can afford it now," Ismail said.

Ismail arrived at his destination within seven minutes. He said that he normally had to walk to and fro on Majeedhee Magu for a long time before a taxi picked him up, and that he had discovered taxis name prices to their liking. 

The bus service is free for the next two weeks. After the two-week trial, bus services are going to be free for school children, the elderly and people with disabilities.

Akash, an Indian student studying in Grade 11 of Ahmadiyya School, said that when his parents went to work, he had to go to school by himself. However, since the bus service is now available, he said he will always ride the bus to school now. It has become very convenient for him to travel to school.

Bus services will be available from 5:45am to 12:15pm every day of the week. Some people have been concerned that traffic in Male' city may be more congested with bus services. However, traffic in Male' city was not congested as it was originally thought. Bus services have also been delayed due to high traffic during rush hours. The bus arrives every 10 or 15 minutes but sometimes more often than that. While trial shuttles have commenced today, the boards to mark the bus stops have not been erected yet. Therefore, some people were asking around about where the bus stopped.

"It was difficult because of the lack of bus stops, places to stay and road maps. It will be very important to improve these things," said Ismail, the elderly who had previously spoken on his ride to the park. 

The bus stop signs are currently being installed in Male so that bus routes and stops will be made visible. MTCC is working to complete the project within the next two weeks. 

The resumption of public transport services or bus services in Male' city after an 11-year break is no small relief to the congested populations in the capital. This service will hopefully be the end of many a burden carried by Male residents.