Herat Residents Report Public Transport Shortage After Rickshaw Ban

Residents of Herat city say a shortage of public passenger vehicles has become a serious challenge, forcing them to wait extended periods to travel between city sections.

Fazl Ahmad Yarizada, a Herat resident, said: "After the rickshaws were collected from the city, the Islamic Emirate should have replaced them with new minibuses, and taxis should transport people in a standard way."

Yasser, another resident, said: "I've been waiting here for more than half an hour, but there's no taxi to take me to Shindand. On one hand, roads are being built and congesting the city, and on the other hand, there are not enough passenger vehicles to transport people. Rickshaws were a good facility for poor people."

The Herat Road Transport Department states that after banning rickshaws on main roads, hundreds of urban passenger vehicles have been introduced as replacements. Mohammad Asif Asif, head of the department, said: "Minibuses, Tonus and Flankoch vehicles are operating in the city. In total, one thousand taxis operate on urban routes, and a large part of people's needs are met by these vehicles."

Department officials say they are working to address transportation challenges in Herat. However, residents describe the number of urban passenger vehicles as insufficient, with high taxi fares making travel difficult for the poor.

Fazl Ahmad Ahmadi, a social expert, said: "If the number of minibuses for transporting people in the city increases, given the poverty and neediness, it can be good help to citizens; but alone it is not sufficient and needs several simultaneous approaches to fundamentally solve people's problems."

About one and a half months ago, Herat Traffic Management banned rickshaws on main roads to reduce congestion and disorder. Rickshaws had played a key role in providing cheap transport across the city, and residents now call for standard minibuses.