Introducing the quarterly Kampala boda report

Introduction

Since motorcycle boda bodas began increasing in number in Kampala in the late 1990s (purveyors will know the original bicycle variety has been around since the 1970s), the only data available has been from one-off academic articles and largely disinterested government bodies. If you want to know, for example, how many boda boda riders are wearing helmets in Kampala, you’d have to scrape through a number of academic articles written over the past ten years — all using different methods — making it quite difficult to compare them. If you wanted to know how many boda bodas there are in Kampala, you’d need to go to the Uganda Revenue Authority with a very good reason and a promise not to share it with anyone else — and even then, their registration numbers are an underestimate.

To address the gap, we have started to collect data independently, on a quarterly basis. We’re doing it on our own shilling and we started modestly, by obtaining three measures through simple observation: 1) numbers of moving bodas, 2) rider helmet wearing, and 3) utility rate (% of moving bodas carrying passengers or delivery loads). Conducting this work on a quarterly basis with a consistent methodology, we hope to be able to provide data to policy makers, innovators, boda boda riders, and the general public on the boda boda industry.

Methodology

Our methods were fairly simple: Geofrey and Kalungi would sit on the side of the road and mark off motorcycles going one direction for 15 minutes, then switch and observe the other direction for another fifteen minutes. Observations were carried out at 34 locations across Kampala.

Boda numbers

As expected, the highest numbers of bodas are on main roads, at junctions, and in Central Division. The numbers of boda bodas observed over the 30-minute period in Central Division was more than double that in the suburbs of Kira, Nansana, and Makindye-Ssabagabo.

The lowest number of bodas observed over a 30-minute period was 19 bodas, on a Kawempe backroad, while the highest was 693 boda bodas (over 23 a minute!) on Kampala Road, near Watoto Church. High usage in the downtown is likely due to a combination of factors: high traffic volumes, short trips, and busy white collar workers. Class divisions likely also play a part — low boda counts in Kira may be due to higher car ownership in the area.

Utility rates

There was little difference in utility rates across the urban area of Kampala, with an average of 54% across all divisions, ranging from Nansana (48%) to Kawempe and Nakawa (56%). There also didn’t seem to be a large difference across the day, and it fluctuated between 46% and 57%.

We would suggest two potential reasons for the low utility rate in Central Division: 1) it attracts a lot of boda drivers looking for work, and 2) there are private motorcycle users who drive into town for work.

While findings don’t separate riders carrying passengers from those carrying loads, a short additional survey we carried out found that around 10% of boda riders on the road were carrying loads, ranging from meals to motorcycles. However, there are also boda drivers wearing backpacks — who may or may not be transporting goods for others — creating ambiguity in observing boda boda loads.

Helmet wearing

Helmet wearing by boda boda riders was most common on main roads and in the downtown area, with the frequency of helmet wearing rising from 62% in the suburbs to 72% and 85% in the inner ring (Lubaga, Makindye, Nakawa, and Kawempe) and Central Division, respectively. This confirms the experience of boda boda riders and passengers, who all report much higher enforcement of helmet wearing laws in downtown areas.

Cost of petrol

Uganda is currently undergoing a cost-of-living crisis, including and exacerbated by the high cost of petrol. At the time of this survey, petrol was more costly in Uganda than neighbouring Kenya, Tanzania, or Rwanda. Our observational survey of the price of petrol also revealed some interesting price disparities — while Shell and Petro were consistent with their prices across their gas stations, Total and Oryx both had location-dependent pricing. That said, the highest prices were only 6% above the lowest prices among the 14 gas stations visited.

The price of petrol affects the boda boda business in a wide range of manners, as we’ve recently reported. Most significantly, it squeezes boda boda riders and passengers, with riders having to choose between raising their prices to offset the higher cost of petrol or keeping them low to keep customers happy. It could affect the utility rate in several ways: it could reduce the number of willing passengers and thus reduce the utility rate, and it could also encourage riders to be more efficient with their fuel usage and spend less time driving without a load.

Up next

Meanwhile, with helmet usage dropping off away from the city, there is a need to seriously assess the role of enforcement. We’ll be looking to the leadership of road safety groups like Safe Way Right Way, URRENO, HOVITA, and others to press the police to enforce not only on Nansana Road but all the way to Nansana.