After the Regional Express Train (TER), the Rapid Transit Bus (BRT), costing 419 billion FCfa, started its rotations yesterday. It will cross the communes of Cambérène, Patte D’oie, Grand-Yoff, Dieuppeul-Derklé, Sicap-Liberté, Mermoz-Sacré Cœur, Grand-Dakar, Point E-Amitié, the commune of Fass-Colobane-Gueule Tapée, Médina and finally Dakar-Plateau, and enable the capital to breathe easier. Transport Minister El Malick Ndiaye welcomes the initiative.

In the life of the nation, this is a momentous occasion. “This is a great first in Africa, and we invite all Senegalese to make this project their own,” said El Malick Ndiaye, Minister of Infrastructure and Land and Air Transport. Yesterday, he launched the gradual commissioning of Brt. Together with project managers, he travelled by bus from the Guédiawaye Prefecture to Petersen. He had 40 minutes to appreciate the journey and the “comfort” offered by this 100% electric means of transport. “We would like to thank all those involved in making this project a reality. We visited the Pcc, the starting point at the Guédiawaye Prefecture. There, we made the journey together. And what we can say is that the Brt project has been a success in its implementation, in the overall financial package, and we thank the initiators and development partners, the contractors and all those who participated in the success of this project », thanks El Malick Ndiaye.

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For him, Senegal has just acquired a modern transport system. A jewel to be preserved. “And we invite all Senegalese to make this project their own, particularly in terms of behaviour. Because it’s all about quality, hygiene, the environment and safety. But above all, it’s about developing the area by providing all the amenities, and that will enable all those nice people who are here in promiscuity, living in Dakar, to return home and work at home. Dakar will be able to breathe, and we’ll no longer be involved in short-term projects, but in structural projects like the Brt,” assures the Transport Minister.

El Malick Ndiaye: “The State negotiated fares well”.

And he announced the arrival of over 1,000 buses to reinforce other lines. “This is extremely important,” he adds. Asked about the price of transport, El Malick Ndiaye thinks it’s reasonable: “400 F and 500 F are reasonable fares. It was well negotiated by the State of Senegal, through Cetud, to set a reasonable fare.”

Today, El Malick Ndiaye also praises Brt’s staff recruitment model. “We’ve also noticed that there are young people working and female recruitment is at 40%, and practically all the team leaders I’ve seen are women, and they’re working on recruiting female drivers. Now you don’t just need a driver’s license to drive a means of transport such as a bus », recalled the Minister.

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Echoing this, Dr Thierno Birahim Aw, General Manager of Cetud, points out that the project also has an environmental dimension, with cutting-edge technology to serve 23 stations that are already self-sufficient in solar energy. There are also 121 electric buses. “The launch of full commercial service will enable the 23 Brt stations to operate on 4 lines (omnibus, express, 2 semi-express), with a service range from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (last departure), and the entire bus fleet available for frequency intervals of one to two minutes”, noted the Cetud Director.

With this new route, Senegal will save 60,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. Traffic is one of the main causes of pollution in the city.

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It should be noted that a study updated in 2022 on the cost of negative externalities linked to road transport in the Dakar region, originally carried out in 1998, revealed that the Senegalese economy “loses 900 billion CFA francs annually due to problems linked to automobile pollution, congestion, road insecurity and noise. These losses represent 6% of the national GDP”.

Today, the Brt, which runs from Petersen to the Guédiawaye Prefecture, serves 14 stations from Monday to Sunday and on public holidays. There will be a departure every 6 minutes between the Guédiawaye Prefecture and Grand Médine. There will also be a departure every 3 minutes on the Papa Guèye Fall and Grand Médine section, which has 8 stations. Not to mention feeder lines for Ddd and Aftu buses to some of the 14 stations served.

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For the time being, only 14 of the 23 stations are served, as the others are not operational due to the damage caused during the political unrest last June. Stéphane Volant, President of the operator Dakar Mobilité, announced a decongestion of the Dakar conurbation, asphyxiated by traffic jams. “By way of comparison, the Ter carries 50,000 passengers every day (sic). The Brt will replace tens of thousands of cars every day. It’s going to make a spectacular contribution to decongesting the city,” says Volant.

Launched on October 28, 2019, work was due to end in December 2022. Last June’s demonstrations in Dakar, which resulted in ransacking of the Brt, delayed the deadline. And they have cost the State of Se¬negal too much, as the impact of the riots is estimated at over 5 billion francs, according to Cetud.  Obviously, this has an impact on the construction budget. While the cost was estimated at 300 billion francs, financed by the World Bank, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the State of Senegal, it ultimately came to 419 billion F Cfa.

The State of Senegal has awarded a 15-year concession to operate and maintain Brt to Dakar Mobilité, a Senegalese company owned 70% by the French company Meridiam and 30% by Senegal’s Sovereign Fund for Strategic Investments (Fonsis).

By Abdou Latif MANSARAY 

  • Translation by Ndey T. SOSSEH