AREQUIPA, Peru – At the beginning of 2019, almost 400 minibuses of the brand Gazelles from Russia. Today, some five years later, only 60% of these vehicles, popularly known as “gazelles”, are still in use.
This was reported by the official press of the Island in a report that recognizes the serious problems of Cuban transportation, although at times it tries to minimize them.
According to the text, it has been “practically impossible” to secure the basic resources for the maintenance of the gazelles due, among other factors, to the impact of Covid-19. Thus, “the provisions of the lease contract have been breached and the drivers have had to play a key role in this.”
Since their introduction in Cuba and “in the face of the deterioration of other public passenger transportation services,” gazelles have been in high demand among the people. In turn, as the state media points out, Cubadebatecomplaints and criticism from cubans about the service have been abundant.
The main complaints include long waiting times, the large number of people waiting their turn, the poor condition of the stops, the lack of presence during the day compared to the night, the use or lack of use of GPS tracking and dissatisfaction with drivers and detours, among many others.
According to the stipulations, this type of taxi on the route, also known as Metrotaxi, has 23 routes with a staggered schedule that covers the hours between 6:30 am and 9:00 pm, in which the user must pay 5 pesos for each section that they travel within the route.
However, these rates are often not met, or drivers determine the sections and their cost arbitrarily. Outside of established hours, the prices The driver sets them based on the market, supply and demand. “This is precisely one of the issues on which we receive the most opinions,” the note says.
Regarding the 40% of gazelles that are counted out of service, the regime identifies several causes such as “breakages and unforeseen events often related to blown tires or punctures; cracked spring leaves; damage to the brake, electrical or clutch systems; doors dismantled due to excessive use of force when opening or closing them, among others.”
Are various deficiencies and the one that has had the greatest impact on the provision of this service during 2024 has been fuel and the difficulties in servicing vehicles.
“But we also know that there are many issues in which the provision of this service can be improved and (…) these are decisions that do not require a large investment of resources, but rather coordination by managers and those involved,” he highlights. Cubadebate.
An island with little transportation
The public transport crisis in Cuba is not abating and has shown declining results since 2017, authorities acknowledge,
“By the end of the first half of the year, 463 million 21 thousand 330 passengers had been transported by all modes and services, 72% of what was planned for the semester, with a decrease of 48 million 860 thousand 850 passengers compared to the same period of the previous year (511 million 708 thousand 700 passengers, 10% less)”, Minister of Transport Eduardo Rodríguez Dávila reported on his Facebook page.
In this way, it is estimated that in 2024 Cuban state transport will move around 930 million passengers, less than half of what was achieved in the years prior to COVID-19, the official acknowledged.
Local public transport is in the worst position, with only 39% of what was planned at the end of June.
Provincial transport companies are also in a critical situation with 52% of routes paralysed, the minister said.
