How and where to catch an electric bus.
The future of commuter transport is here with several electric buses available. With all the presence on the roads, there are some of the Nairobi residents who are yet to catch one of the electric buses.
The future of commuter transport is here with several electric buses available. With all the presence on the roads, there are some of the Nairobi residents who are yet to catch one of the electric buses.
There are four companies that operate on several routes within the Nairobi metropolis. Here is how and where you can catch the buses:
One of the firms, Roam Rapid, operates its buses from the Central Business District (CBD) to Limuru via Waiyaki Way. The bus leaves Koja roundabout to Limuru at 7 am while from Limuru to CBD is 8.15 am. The fare is Ksh 100. However just like the combustion competitors the bus fare is subjected to the point of boarding and alighting
The bus picks up and drops off passengers along the stretch which includes; 87, Kinoo, Regen, Muthiga, Uthiru, Mountain View, Kangemi, ABC Place, Safaricom, Westlands, Chiromo, and GPO.
Roam has also partnered with Neo Kenya Bus company thereby some of the Neo buses have been converted to electric and they operate around the Thika road route. The PSVs are available at the Bus Station terminus.
Similarly, BasiGo produces electric buses for sale. It also offers a number of them to other bus companies such as Super Metro and City Hoppa on lease. The buses charge the same amount as they do on normal routes ranging between Ksh30 and Ksh100. Commuters can access the buses at various pickup points at the Kenya National Archives, Kencom and Ambassador stop.
BasiGo also delivered buses to OMA services and the buses will be plying the CBD – BuruBuru – Civil Servants estate (CIVO) route. On this route, the buses will be fully cashless operating on the Sasapay platform, with payments being on the ubiquitous mobile money platform Mpesa.
The company also delivered the first of 5 K6 electric buses to Super Metro Sacco, one of Nairobi’s other leading public transport operators.
Here’s a rundown of the current routes in Nairobi where you can get on one of the K6 electric buses:
- Citi Hoppa: CBD – Allsops-Airport
- East Shuttle: City Stadium – Buruburu – Dandora
- Super Metro: CBD – Kikuyu
- OMA: CBD – Civil Servants (CIVO)
- Embassava- Embakasi- Savannah- Pipeline- Donholm.
- Metro Trans- The bus will ply several routes from CBD including Ngong Road, Mombasa Road, and its environs.
It’s really great to see that the fleet of electric buses in Nairobi is growing thanks to BasiGo’s innovative Pay-As-You-Drive Model that lowers the batteries to entry for operators to get brand new electric buses. Here is a summary of BasiGo’s Pay-As-You-Drive:
- A single daily subscription fee is charged per km driven
- Billed and paid directly between the operator and BasiGo.
- Includes nightly charging of the battery.
- Includes all standard service and maintenance for the bus
- Free battery replacement in the event of any battery issue.
- Includes dedicated customer care, roadside assistance, free software upgrades, and more.
Electric buses are considered a safer option to diesel-operated PSVs as they use green energy and reduce air pollution.
