Created in November, the Smartphone application Safe Bode has a hundred registered drivers, divided into twenty stations across Kampala. Drivers all wear reflective clothing when drive the motorcycle.
Fast and cheap, "bode bode" (motorcycle taxis) plying the congested streets of Kampala, the Ugandan capital, are also very dangerous. Safe Bode, a local startup, wants to make more convenient via mobile by linking the model decried Uber, and especially safer.
These taxis to two wheels were born after independence, on the border between Kenya and Uganda where carrying cargo or passengers in the no-man’s land bicycles between the two border posts. Hence the name "border-to-border" (border to border), the local pronunciation turned it into bode through the Africa East.
Cheaper than taxis, playing traffic jams that congest the Ugandan capital, they are notorious as involved in many serious accidents. Nearly 40% of injuries treated at Malaga National Hospital in Kampala originate accident bode, according to a joint study in 2010 by the hospital and the Ugandan Miserere University.
An accident, there are six, who has long been unable to work , Silver, 36, took over his job about which earns him 20,000 Ugandan shillings per day (6 Euros), slightly more than either the estimated average wage in the country.
Silver reflective tape now wants to join the ranks of Safe Bode. "Bode have the bad reputation" admits co-founder of the start-up, Ricky Rapa Thomson, 28, himself bode driver for four years and organizes city tours to bike. "We want to say that bode are safe. Forging us a good reputation, we will attract more customers and win more money. "
Jumna, 32, who for six years slaloming between the potholes Kampala’s with one or more passengers clinging behind him, joined Safe Bode shortly after its launch. Since then, the father of four ensures have gained new regular customers and pocketing 10,000 shillings (3 Euros) every day.
Created in November, Safe Bode has a hundred registered drivers, divided into twenty stations across the city, located and reachable by customers through an application on mobile phone.
Each driver receives Safe Bode driving lessons, maintenance of his motorcycle, a training client service and a first aid training course provided by the Uganda Red Cross. In exchange for a weekly fee of 10,000 shillings, they receive a Smartphone, a reflective vest and two helmets - one for themselves and one for their client.
Safe Bode was quickly identified as the "Uber motorcycle taxis." A paradoxical nickname as the US giant linking with car transportation with drivers is accused of circumventing the strict regulations surrounding the professions and taxi drivers in developed countries. Ugandan society, meanwhile, says the contrary will create a safer environment in a profession devoid of rules across Africa.
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