Luvei Times Kenya's Social Online Magazine

Boda Boda spice : Kisumu city on roll

boda boda operators waiting for customers

Bicycle taxis, referred to as “Boda boda” by the locals. The name is a play on the english word “Border.” Because some years ago, bicycles were the only form of transportation across Kenya and Uganda border points. This form of transportation was highly favored by small time smugglers who ferried goods across the borders. So people started calling them boda boda.

Bicycle taxis are numerous in Kisumu and great fun way to get around the town. The rides are quite cheap as well. They are replacing motorized vehicles, with their passengers perched on padded seats positioned above the back wheel.

Young men at work

Operated by mostly young men who are very notorious for their disregard of road safety, boda boda riders sometimes do make the lives of motorists a living hell. They each competing for limited space and money.

Many people do not want to use matatus (another invention of the 70’s) anymore. Bicycles have become the most preferred mode of commute because they are cheaper and faster. Because of the traffic jam, the cyclists maneuver easily between the vehicles. It costs a mere 20 shillings (less than a half a dollar) to travel across Kisumu on a bicycle. Matatu rates are double that. The bicycles are everywhere. The ringing of bells and the crunch of wheels on dirt are the dominant sounds in Kisumu.
The bicycles taxis have also benefited people in rural areas of western Kenya who have been able to reach schools, clinics, etc.

The owners have painted their bicycles taxis in a kaleidoscope of colours. They are decorated with ribbons and flags which blow in the breeze as the bicycles accelerate to their destinations. Others are inscribed with religious slogans like “God is Love”, “Jesus is the Answer” and some have the names of the owner’s favorite English soccer team like “Man U”, “The Gunners”, and whereas others have names of favorite musicians and politicians. Still others offer logos that are very weird.

Preferred form of commute

visiting kisumu: boda boda is transport of choice now

I decided to seek an opinion from both the cyclists and the Matatu drivers. One cyclist I interviewed amused me when he said “Cycling boda boda is not a joke!” he said, as sweat poured from his bare chest. “The moment when I will get married, I’ll will give away this bicycle to my young brother and look for something else. I would not like to lose my wife to another man.” When I asked him why he thinks like that, and yet he is not even married. He looked at me, smiled then replied; “I will not have strength left for her as I cycle from dawn to dusk. The moment I enter into my house, I only think of taking a bath, eating and sleeping. Cycling the whole day, is nobody’s joke, at night I sleep like a log. This is not what a new young bride wants for a man or is it? I will not have time for my wife unless I quit the boda boda business”.

When you looked around to all, you’ll see this operators, their muscles bulged as they peddled through the streets. You feel sympathy for the hard working men and only wish they could get something different to do to earn a living. This business is feted with a lot of hazard, besides health the bicycle operators are risking their lives every moment as they are hit and injured or even killed by the speeding motorists.

Matatus on way out

Talking to some PSV matatu owners, one of them said, “I want to sell my matatu and buy lots of boda boda. That is the way I can survive in the future.” He continued, “Ah you see madam, I used to make a lot of money transporting people around town but now this is no more.”

Another PSV motorist with dreams confided to me that he plans to dis-invest in matatu then acquire several bicycles. “I want to expand my business by buying ten bicycles and I want each bicycle to give me five dollars a day” he said.

The reason why many people own bicycles and some dream of buying more in Kenya may be because cycling is open road, besides, there no rules for cyclists.