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Taxify introduces boda boda hailing service in Nairobi


Ride-sharing firm Taxify on Thursday introduced a new motorbike hailing service.

The new service will operate within their existing smartphone application being used by vehicles.

Kenya becomes the second country after Uganda where Taxify launched the boda-boda service.

Taxify Kenya Operations Manager Chisom Anoke said that the firm had developed the new service in response to a growing demand for a safe, organized and reliable motorbike service.

“In Nairobi where traffic jams and clogged roads delay movement, raising use of motorcycle riders for public passenger transport is a reality that we have to live with particularly,” said Anoke.

The firm says it has started off with an attractive offer to the drivers with a minimum fare of Sh50 per trip, a base rate of Sh30, Sh15 per Km and Sh3 per minute.

Interested riders will be required to use motorcycles whose earliest year of manufacture is 2015.

They will also need Public Service Vehicle Insurance, two reflective jackets and two helmets.

The riders will also undergo thorough verification before being accepted by Taxify.

Anoke said the additional application is able to monitor the behaviour of the riders and provide passengers with a platform to immediately share user experience and rate the riders.

“It is mandatory for both the rider and the passenger to wear a helmet and a reflective jacket. Nobody except those with a disability is allowed to sit facing sideways as the rules only allow passengers to sit astride,” he said.

“The system we have in place enables us to carry out thorough background checks in partnership with the NTSA and the Kenya Police Service.”

Riders found to have contravened the rules will be automatically blocked based on passenger ratings.