Having spent considerable hours negotiating my way around Kigali, and even venturing to places further afield, I can reliably offer a few observations on the transport options here.
1. You can walk, either on the footpath, if there is one, or on the roadside. The footpaths often contain traps for the unwary, such as holes which disappear several feet down (unmarked and ungarded). The pedestrian traffic also needs some negotiating, with school children who all want to give you a 'high five' and try out their English on the muzungu (whites). They have a fairly limited repertoire - you can sort of guess where their teachers are up to in the standard textbook - "Good morning. How are you?" (This can be said anytime of the night or day!)You respond, "Good morning. I am fine. How are you?", the response being "I am fine" That's about the limit of the conversation with the littlies - the older the child the more territory you can cover conversation- wise. Having said that, their English is far superior to my Kinyarwanda!!
Then there are the young uni students talking on their mobiles or having important debates or whatever - much like students anywhere.
Then the women with either a baby strapped on their back (you can tell by the tell tale little feet poking out under mum's arms), or with a basket of fruit, a sack of cement etc etc on their head - sometimes they have both baby and fruit platter, and you can bargain for the fruit whilst admiring the baby.
Another handy convenience are the walking shops - young men festooned with clothes to sell or towels or shoes or handbags, who look very much like walking wardrobes, with their merchandise spread out on each arm, over each shoulder and balanced on their heads. Again - very convenient - one doesn't have to leave the footpath to do the daily shopping.
You do need to be on the ball though and with quick relexes, as sometimes the motos, and even the 4wd's share the footpath with you.... more on these later.
2. If walking is too fraught - mainly where the roads are unsealed and hence tricky to negotiate with the potholes, ravines etc etc - a better option is the bicycle. yes, dinkying is legal here and even sought after. I think it's my favourite way to travel as the pace is slow and someone else worries about the road hazards. You sit on the back of the bike on a padded cushion on the luggage carrier, with your feet on 2 footrests on the rear axle and hanging on to handles on the back of the rider's seat, or more usually, the seat itself. If you're lucky, you even have some music provided by a radio tucked into the young man's back pocket. Costs about 20 cents Australian.
3. Motos are small cc motorbikes and are by far and away the most common form of transport - but not for this 'mama,' as they call women of a certain age here. For about 80 cents you perch on the back of the bike and hang on while the rider negotiates the traffic, usually with total disregard for any road rules, such as crosswalks, roundabouts, giving way to your left, riding on the road and not the footpath etc etc - you get the picture. I guess they're fast and cheap, but I have seen a few accidents with them, and don't think my travel insurance covers them, despite the fact that helmets are compulsory. Usually they're not done up however.
4. Buses, or mini-buses actually are the way to go if you have a fair distance to travel. They're cheap and plentiful. You pay about 30 cents for a squashed in ride, or 50 cents if you don't feel like sharing your seat (often the collapsed fold-down aisle seat)with a total stranger. Each bus has a conductor -tout whose job it is, besides collecting money, to tout for business at each stop. The bus usually doesn't leave until it's full, and competition for passengers is fierce. I saw a poor woman being pulled in 2 directions once, with each tout determined to have her custom. And the other morning on my way to the orphange there were fisticuffs, with I think accusations being made about poaching customers. We all had to get off the bus we were on and move to another one. All in all however, the system works very efficiently, with a lot of bonhommie amongst the drivers and touts, who seem to find it all a game.
5. On the 2 weekends when we've ventured further afield - west to Lake Kivu which is about 2 1/2 to 3 hours from Kigali, we've travelled on a (slightly) bigger bus for about $5 each way. very cheap, and the drivers are skilled at keeping control on those winding mountainous roads.
6. A lot of the expats, especially those employed by NGO's, and a lot of the more wealthy locals, own and drive their own cars - four-wheel drives are popular, I guess because of the rough roads once you leave the main thoroughfares. We more impoverished folk on local wages, are usually left in their dust!
7. There are taxis here too - the trick is to get to know one or 2 drivers and book them ahead of time, as they aren't usually roaming the streets. They aren't metered either, so you have to negotiate the price before you get in. They're always very friendly and helpful however, as are most Rwandans.
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| on Kibuye bus |
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| not recommended |
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| some young Rwandans |
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| the bike option |
