By Khalifa Hemed
Published July 28, 2020
Why are many people reluctant to travel via public transport during this period of the novel Coronavirus pandemic?
Well, travelling is viewed as a high risk activity that should be undertaken only when it is extremely necessary, mainly because it is still unclear whether Coronavirus is airbone or can only be passed on via droplets from person to person only; it is also difficult to enforce social distancing measures in vehicles and planes without modifying them and bringing them under central management.
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These are some of the issues begging the question among the people as Kenya relaxes restriction on movement and social gatherings with a view to enabling citizens to earn a living.
When domestic flights resumed in Kenya on July 15, 2020 after being grounded since April ahead of international travel on August 1, 2020, apprehensive citizens wondered whether airlines would also enforce COVID-19 containment measures applicable to public service vehicles (PSVs) known as matatus; would planes carry fewer passengers to guarantee social distancing, require passengers to wear face masks during flight and have sanitisers for crew and passengers onboard?
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To begin with; just how safe is the air in a plane cabin?
Lets Go Travel Uniglobe, a travel planning agency in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, reassures would-be air travellers that the air in a modern aircraft is ‘Very safe’.
“Air travel, whether for business or pleasure, whether short or long, is safe and should be enjoyable and understanding the aircraft cabin environment can make your journey more comfortable,” Lets Go Travel says in its e-letter.
Quoting European Aviation Safety Agency, Lets Go Travel Uniglobe says studies show that “‘the cabin/cockpit air quality is similar or better than what is observed in normal indoor environments’ such as offices, schools and home dwellings.”
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How so?
“Modern aircraft have high efficiency air filters similar to those used in hospital operating rooms. They capture more than 99.9% of the airborne microbes in the filtered air,” Lets Go Travel Uniglobe says. “As the tourism sector gradually reopens and as we become more comfortable with the idea of travelling, there will be need to feel safe and confident that the health of our guests, staff and surrounding communities is protected.”
British Airways, Emirates, KLM, Air France and Qatar Airways shall be among the first international airlines to return to Kenya’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, according to Najib Balala, Kenya’s Tourism Minister.
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Back on the road; just how safe is it travelling via that non-formal public transport known as the matatu that is operated not by government but various private individuals?
When Kenya announced the partial lockdown of Nairobi metropolitan Area, Mombasa, Kilifi and Mandera administrative regions, matatus were required to be fitted with new sitting arrangement to guard against the spread of COVID-19 among travellers. Hand-washing, wearing of face masks and keeping of a distance of at least 1.5 metres from one passenger to another was made mandatory.
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As time went on matatu crew and passengers dropped their guard on these measures. Now, as COVID-19 cases in the East African country continue to surge ahead, the Government, in its new Protocol for Public Road Transport Operations, says all licensed PSVs have to be validated to operate every 30 days by the National Transport Safety Authority (NTSA) and the Health and Interior ministries. Any operator who fails to adhere to the safety guidelines, Government says, shall have their operation licenses revoked.
Consequently, matatus shall be inspected by the County Commissioners and County Directors of Public Health of the regions they operate whether they have complied with safety guidelines for containing COVID-19. They must demonstrate that they have in place mechanisms for COVID-19 contact tracing and management of suspected Covid-19 cases prior to being licensed.
“We have put in place an inspection and certification process of ensuring PSV operators observe the new protocol and guidelines issued by the Ministry of Health,” James Macharia, Kenya’s Minister for Transport, says.
But will this really be enforced?
Alarmed at the rate at which COVID-19 is spreading, Daily Nation, a leading mainstream newspaper, has called on authorities to enforce safety guidelines in PSVs.
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Health authorities and security personnel, Daily Nation writes in its Editorial, must step up enforcement of the safety guidelines and punish those who flout them.
The failure of the PSV sector to observe the safety measures, the newspaper warns, poses a grave danger that should worry everyone in Kenya.
But critics and social commentators fault the Government of Kenya on not imposing on airlines safety measures similar to those applicable to matatus. They wonder whether this has to do with class and status.
