Bagamoyo boat services set to start in December

A modern high speed ferry will effective next December offer commuter services between Magogoni in Dar es Salaam and Bunju area near Bagamoyo, in a move aimed to tame perennial traffic jams in the country’s ever growing commercial capital.

The Minister for Works, Dr John Magufuli, said the ferry with the capacity of 300 passengers will make seven stopovers on the way to the city centre, as the government takes practical measures to address traffic jams which cause the city a loss of over 4bn/- daily in revenue.

“This is part of President Jakaya Kikwete’s government electoral promises in 2010,” Dr Magufuli said after Tanzania Electrical and Mechanical Services Agency (TEMESA) signed a 7.91bn/- contract with Danish firm, Johs Gram Hanssen, which will supply the boat.

Dr Magufuli said the boat was bought using funds from proceeds from hiked ferry fare over a year ago. He said the vessels was aimed at easing congestion in the city.

“This boat is being purchased by our money, It’s not Danish aid money. No..no..no it’s our own money so please ensure that you deliver value for our money,” Dr Magufuli said while speaking to Danish Ambassador to Tanzania, John Frento who attended the signing ceremony.

He said more boats will come in Dar es Salaam and elsewhere in the country and paid tribute to TEMESA board of directors led by Prof Idrissa Nsholo and management led by Chief Executive Officer, Eng. Masenene Magesa.

Giving a brief description of the boat which will be built in Bangladesh, Eng. Magesa said it will accommodate 200 passengers on the lower deck, 80 on the upper deck and 20 on the sun deck.

“The boat will cruise at 20 nautic miles per hour or 40 kilometres per hour,” she said, noting that construction work will begin immediately because the money for the purchase is available.

Eng. Magesa further noted that 12 companies submitted bids for the competitive international tender which was won by the Danish firm.

By FINNIGAN WA SIMBEYE, Tanzania Daily News

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.