Mini-buses and increased frequency to ease Male’ City traffic

The Maldivian government is taking decisive steps to alleviate traffic congestion in Male' City by increasing bus frequency and replacing large buses with mini buses better suited for the city's compact streets. 

Although the introduction of public transportation through bus connectivity was largely praised by citizens due to the affordability and ease of connectivity, there was one issue created with the introduction of the bus service. As the buses utilised for Male’ City and Hulhumale’ are large double-decker buses, the issue of congestion and traffic was soon noted by the public - who started having mixed feelings about buses. Although it has become one of the most affordable and sometimes the easiest ways to connect between Male’, Hulhule’ and Hulhumale’, drivers have noted that the buses contribute significantly to traffic congestion, which has led to drivers finding it exceedingly difficult to navigate the streets. 

In a move to bring a resolution to this issue, several measures are expected to be introduced by the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation as part of the ‘Male’ Fahi’ program. This program, which focuses on addressing the dense population and traffic issues of Male’ is set to seek several measures which can be taken in order to bring a resolution to the congestion issue which appears to get worse by the year. 

One of the key initiatives under this program is the switch from large buses to mini buses, which are more adaptable to Male's narrow streets. Additionally, the frequency of bus routes will be increased to ensure more efficient public transportation. This move by the Government might be one of the solutions to make public transportation more reliable and less intrusive on the city’s traffic flow. With this, we might see buses becoming more reliable while also causing less traffic issues for other drivers.