48 Australasian Journal of Regional Studies, Vol. 23, No.

1, 2017

ACCESSIBILITY OF ANBESSA CITY BUS

SERVICE IN ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA:
AN ANALYSIS OF STAKEHOLDER’S
OPINIONS
Kelbesa Kenea
RHD Candidate, School of Business and Law, Central Queensland University,
North Rockhampton, QLD 4702, Australia. Email: [email protected]

Susan Kinnear
Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Tourism and Regional Opportunities, Central
Queensland University, North Rockhampton, QLD 4702, Australia.

Delwar Akbar
Research Fellow/Senior Lecturer, School of Business and Law, Central
Queensland University, North Rockhampton, QLD 4702, Australia.

ABSTRACT: Addis Ababa is one of the fastest growing cities in the world,
yet is constrained by poor accessibility of city bus services. This paper examines
the factors affecting the accessibility of Anbessa City bus service in Addis Ababa
through an analysis of the stakeholders’ opinions. An exploratory research
approach was taken, using in-depth interviews with the city bus transport
regulators and Anbessa city bus transport service enterprise. The study found that
inadequate infrastructure, poor transport operation and ineffective performance of
stakeholders have resulted in inaccessible service to the users. Addressing the
expectations of users necessitates engagement of modern public transport
operation; strengthening the regulatory mechanisms and (traffic) law enforcement
system; acquisition of skilled human, technology and materials resources; and
attraction of private operators through different incentive mechanisms.

KEYWORDS: Accessibility, Public Transport, City Bus, Addis Ababa

AKNOWLEDGMENTS: The research was supported by the Australian

Government Research Training Program Scholarship grant and Central
Queensland University.
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 49
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

1. INTRODUCTION

Road transport plays a vital role in underpinning the economic growth of

developing countries. City transport services are particularly important in
urban areas as key nodes of economic activity. In Ethiopia, the national
capital is Addis Ababa City, which is responsible for 60 per cent of the
country’s industrial production and 50 per cent of its GDP (Wondifiraw et
al., 2015; World Bank, 2015). The limited number of buses and taxis in
Addis Ababa have resulted in low quality, safety and accessibility of the
service delivery across the city (Berhan et al., 2013; Kumar and Barrett,
2008). Some studies have claimed that institutional weaknesses have
resulted in inaccessibility and in turn, ineffective service provision of the
city buses (Berhan et al., 2013; Kumar and Barrett, 2008). Users are hardly
able to access public transport during peak hours or bad weather conditions
(Fenta, 2014). Sometimes the commuters are required to pay an extra fare
or forced to disembark when only mid-way through their route (Gebeyehu
and Takano, 2007; Kumar and Barrett, 2008). Here, the service providers
may be aware that commuters do not have other alternatives during these
times, and thus press their advantage, pushing the consumer to pay above
the limited fare in order to maximize their profit.
Variously, the (in)accessibility of the city buses in Addis Ababa has been
characterised by problems such as excessive transit times, poor
infrastructure, unreliability and/or inadequacy of vehicles, financial
constraints on operational upgrades, an ineffective regulatory system with
role confusions, and increasing accident rates throughout the city (Kumar
and Barrett, 2008; Litman, 2015; Yilak et al., 2011; Yilma, 2014). This
paper aims to explore factors affecting the accessibility of Anbessa city bus
in Addis Ababa, through analysing stakeholder’s opinions collected via in-
depth interviews with the regulator and operator of the bus service. This
paper is organised under five sections: introduction of the research,
overview of the conceptual framework for public transport accessibility,
an outline of the methodological approach, the key findings and analysis
for the case study, and conclusions and practical implications.

2. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Mobility and accessibility are often interrelated terms in transport

studies. Mobility is a measure of action with which people choose to move
themselves or their goods around. It is concerned with the effectiveness of
50 Kenea et al.

the transport system in connecting spatially separated locations, and the

extent to which a particular individual or type of person can make use of
the transport system (Bryceson et al., 2003; Porter, 2010). On the other
hand, the concept of accessibility in mobility studies has been broadly
understood to summarize the ability of people to access their desired
destinations through a given transport system (Curl et al., 2011). It can also
refer to the potential opportunities for interaction, the ease of reaching any
area of activity using a specific transport system and the overall benefits
provided by a given transport system (Bocarejo and Oviedo, 2012; de
Stasio et al., 2011). Mobility to a desired destination could be formidable
without accessible means of commuting in developing countries where
infrastructure are underdeveloped and transport facilities are inadequate to
the users.
Litman (2015) asserts that a range of factors affects the accessibility of
urban public transport:

1. Motor vehicle travel conditions: automobile travel speeds, affordability

and safety.

2. Quality of other modes: walking, cycling, public transit, telework,

delivery services speeds, convenience, comfort, affordability and safety.

3. Transport network connectivity: density of paths and roadway

connections, directness of travel between destinations, quality of
connections between modes.

4. Land use proximity: development density and mix.

5. Weak regulatory system: ineffective regulation and law enforcement

system.

Considering these, it is clear that accessibility in public transport is a

layered concept with many contributing and interrelated factors.
Stanley and Smith (2013) confirm that delivery of efficient and effective
public transport systems and services require proper skills, integration,
funding and communication. The involvement of the private sector is an
opportunity for the state, as well as bus users, to enjoy efficient and
effective service delivery, introduction of innovative products, high-
quality service and fare reduction. Citizen participation in interactive
public transport management has already been acknowledged as a means
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 51
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

of empowerment and sharing of responsibility for a common goal (Verma

and Priyadarshee, 2015). Moreover, government is another important
stakeholder in public transport accessibility: here, effective service
delivery can be achieved when the government protects the public interest
through proper enforcement of the regulatory framework (Minnery, 2007;
Sohail et al, 2006).
Public transport also requires reliable management and service delivery.
Simona (2010) asserts that vehicle performance, specialization in
passenger transport, coordination, availability, comfort and convenience
are good indicators of operational reliability and management. However, it
is important to note that operations reliability and management may not be
achieved solely through the strength of regulatory framework.
Urban public transport regulation is intended to ensure that appropriate
standards are maintained through testing, monitoring and benchmarking of
city transport provision (Daniel et al., 2012; Sohail et al., 2006). The role
of urban transport regulators is crucial in meeting the state and users’ needs
and to protect the system from unhealthy practices. Regulators need to
ensure that the supply of public transport services is of sufficient quantity
and quality to meet the perceived demand, and that the service is provided
at an affordable fare to the urban dwellers (Tsamboulas et al., 2013; Zhang,
2014). In doing so, regulators have the potential to operate for the public
advantage, putting into practice the policies of government as efficiently
and effectively as possible (Sohail et al., 2006).
The inter-relationships between the private sector, state, transport service
delivery entities and users is provided in Figure 1 below. This shows the
complex system of overlapping and related factors, which must come
together effectively if an accessible public transport system, is to exist.
From this figure, it is easy to identify the interaction amongst factors and
what role each one has to play to achieve the desired goal.
Addis Ababa city is one of the nine autonomous regions in the Ethiopian
federal system, located in the heart of Oromia region (UN-HABITAT,
2011), Anbessa city bus has been the key mode of (formal) public transport
for the city and at least thirteen of the surrounding Oromia region towns
for more than seven decades. It has played significant role in integrating
the culture and socio-economic life of the city and neighbouring Oromia
towns through covering long distances and being relatively affordable to
the lower class citizens (Tsegaye, 2015). Studies suggest that, on the other
hand, adequate growth and transformation has not been observed in
modernising the service delivery system in a way that it is accessible to the
52 Kenea et al.

in need urban dwellers, (Fenta, 2014; Gebeyehu and Takano, 2007). The
extent of commitment and coordination of regional government(s)
agencies, the operator and the community at large allow understanding the
challenges and pursuing the transformation of the existing service
accessibility to a better position. Overall, the research is particularly
important in regional studies because public transport [in] accessibility is
the main concern of dwellers in peri-urban sub-cities of Addis Ababa
where road facilities, (traffic) law enforcement system and regulatory
mechanisms are at stake.
A key information gap for developing nations, particularly in Addis
Ababa city, is to understand the performance, roles and responsibilities of
these stakeholders in addressing the need and expectation of the
community. The paper focuses on presenting a qualitative data analyses
and discussion on these aspects.

Private Sector
. Innovation
. Policy
Formulation
. Efficiency

Accessible State
Users Urban . Regulation
Public . Protection of
. Policy Design
Transport Rights and
.Service Monitoring
Subsidies
and Evaluation
. Filling market
gaps

Figure 1. Urban Public Transport Delivery: Stakeholders Functions.

Note: The Arrows illustrate one way/two-way interaction among the stakeholders. Source: the Authors.

Effective participation of different actors not only allows an accessible

city bus service, but also accountability to each affiliate. Particular to Addis
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 53
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

Ababa, the Federal and City government and transport regulatory bodies
take the lions share in protecting the right of users through allocation of
considerable funds to transform the sector, (Sohail et al., 2006; Sohail et
al., 2004). This encompasses, upgrading the operational capability of the
operator, training the concerned staff from each stakeholder, capitalizing
the road and traffic facilities and provision of subsidies to the users. On the
other hand, the government can facilitate the public transport sector to
become more attractive for (private) entrants through waiving or
minimizing import duties of buses and parts, provision of depots,
arrangement of credit facilities in collaboration with banks and insurance
companies.
Better accessibility of Anbessa buses could also be possible through the
role of citizens and civil society groups in influencing the operator
regarding the service provision. Active participation of the community,
coupled by engagement of lobby groups that intend to play a role in public
transport service provision influence the accessibility of the Anbessa bus
service through challenging other stakeholders on different platforms and
attracting the attention of media, (Sagaris, 2010, 2014). What matters in
Ethiopia, however, is that the community, media and civil society groups
lack confidence to lobby or express their views on government enterprises
due to fear of negative consequences from the government that is likely to
harm their immunity (Bekele and Jagne, 2002; ICG, 2009).
Alliance city bus is the only formal private mass transport service
provider in Addis Ababa, established in 2011, yet limited in number and
route coverage. It appears that the current challenges of mass mobility in
Addis Ababa necessitate not only public owned (Anbessa) city buses but
also active engagement of independent private operators and the
introduction of public-private partnership models which would broaden
travel choices and quality of service to the users (Abreha, 2007;
Siemiatycki, 2013). This assists in filling the gap of service accessibility,
technology, application of modern public transport operation, employment
creation and fostering the productivity of citizens.

3. METHODOLOGY
A qualitative research approach was adopted for this study, via in-depth
interview with twelve respondents from the service provider and the
regulatory bodies, namely Anbessa City Bus Service Enterprise (ACBSE),
Addis Ababa Traffic Management Agency, Addis Ababa Transport
Authority and Addis Ababa Transport Program Management Office. This
54 Kenea et al.

allowed a fuller picture to be generated on the state of factors affecting the

accessibility of Anbessa City Bus in Addis Ababa. A range of academic
and grey literature has been reviewed to build the conceptual framework.
Moreover, secondary data from the stakeholder institutions were reviewed
to provide a better framing of the discussions held with the stakeholders.
Descriptive and thematic content analyses were used to interpret the data,
including narrative interpretative analysis. The research presents the
findings from the in-depth interview, which was an exploration into the
different factors that have contributed to the inaccessibility of the city bus
in Addis Ababa.

4. FINDINGS AND ANALYSES

Overview of Key Themes

After completing the interviews, transcribing and translating the material

(from the native Amharic into English), a thematic analysis was conducted.
This was prepared by considering each interviewee’s response case-by-
case, and allowing major and minor themes to emerge. Overall, the areas
of law enforcement, infrastructure, accessibility and institutional
frameworks received the dominant share of frequencies, with the items of
transport operations, comfort and safety, and stakeholder engagement
receiving fewer mentions. Some of the key themes are described in further
detail in the following sections.

Stakeholder Participation and Institutional Arrangements

Coordination amongst stakeholders and institutional design has been

acknowledged as being a key determinant of effective and accessible
public transport systems. For example, Xu et al. (2010) indicated that the
application of systems and technologies, comparing of alternatives, careful
application of policy and planning, due consideration of operations and
management, and future development are areas where strong collaboration
should occur between public transport agencies, the community and
private firms. The public transport service operations in Addis Ababa
includes multiple stakeholders, however, it appears that the trend for the
city is by far a poor level of integration amongst the actors and institutional
arrangements that doesn’t go beyond simple dialogues and information
sharing with poor commitment for action (Dagnachew, 2007). As one
stakeholder noted: “the private firms are reluctant to join the public
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 55
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

transport market in the city owing to uncertain transport market

regulation and institutional arrangements.” Private operators prefer to
join the market only on condition that the cost benefit analysis is found to
be feasible. The city’s public transport regulatory and operational
bottlenecks, absence of government’s commitment to attract discourages
the private stakeholders to avoid the uncertainties.
Discussions held with the stakeholders, as well as the literature showed
that the involvement of private operators in the Addis Ababa mass
transport sector is very limited, as has been previously reported (Tsegaye,
2015). Weaknesses in transport policy and coordination among the
stakeholders, poor law enforcement systems, uncertain markets, and the
absence of incentives from the Federal or city government to encourage
mass import of transport vehicles and their parts (FDRE-MoT, 2011;
Kassahun, 2007; Yilma, 2014) have impaired the interest of the private
firms to participate in the market. Provision of accessible public transport
requires a joint effort of the regulators and (private) service providers
through a win-win approach to address the public transport need. In the
same token, agitating for change to achieve better accessibility of Addis
Ababa bus transport system requires the engagement of the stakeholders
through participative governance (Díaz-Cayeros et al., 2014). However, it
has been previously reported that Anbessa City Bus Service lacks
participatory management where the voices of users and private firms are
not heard (Kumar and Barrett, 2008).
Some stakeholders mentioned that, whilst the operator does approach the
community through different channels, the practical aspect of Anbessa city
bus operation doesn’t reflect the users’ needs. For example, during
interviews, the stakeholders noted that Anbessa city bus inaccessibility
arises from land use problems, inadequate number (absence) of bus stops
and/or transit stations, and poor law enforcement systems. These are the
kinds of concerns that might be raised by users amongst the community,
when given the opportunity to provide feedback. Tsegaye (2015) clearly
stated, “Complaint handling of the Enterprise has [a] negative outcome”.
What is problematic is that many of the areas of complaints are items
outside of ACBSE direct control, for example, land use, transit stations and
law enforcement. Hence, whilst the service is trying to encourage
community participation in designing a better service (through feedback),
there is a disconnection because the solutions that are needed are not within
ACBSE’s direct control. This implies that a commitment for corrective
actions towards the users’ complaints or demands are not given due
56 Kenea et al.

attention, or are outside the sphere of influence of the operator itself, thus
requiring a much more integrative and collaborative approach to solution
seeking (and implementation).
Better institutional arrangements, transparency, coordination and
commitment of the stakeholders are important for the effectiveness of an
accessible public transport service (Hrelja et al., 2016). It was noted during
the interviews that ACBSE works with Addis Ababa Road Transport
Authority, Addis Ababa Traffic Management Agency and Addis Ababa
Drivers and Vehicles Inspection and Control Authority and Addis Ababa
Police Commission, either in a direct or indirect fashion. However, it was
also evident through the interviewee’s commentary that the stakeholder
institutions have weak coordination and commitment to realise the
effective accessibility to the users. For example, the institutions lack of a
comprehensive public transport policy and strategy framework which
clearly indicates the duty and responsibility of each actor under the same
hierarchy (Kumar and Barrett, 2008). In relation to this, one of the
stakeholders indicated “the absence of clear demarcation of jurisdictions
among the regulators and their commitment to achieve the common goal
(here enhancing accessibility) create[s] a loophole in the formulation and
enactment of the city’s transport policy and strategy”. The concept is that
the regulatory bodies lack common understanding and boundary to work
for a common objective.

Transport Planning, Infrastructure and Operations

Contemporary city planning must consider the strong relationship

between territory and mobility. Based on this premise, and with an
adequate plan, authorities can foresee and prevent problems experienced
by commuters; address existing weaknesses, and where a relationship is
truly solid, even create better communities (Crespo, 2012).
Currently, the inaccessibility of public transport in Addis Ababa is
heavily influenced by inadequate/worn-out infrastructure, poor transport
planning and traditional transport operations (Desthuis-Francis, 2002).
Abreha (2007) described the Office of Reviewing Addis Ababa Master
Plan (OAAMP), which asserted that the road network and capacity is badly
constrained by poor quality standards, shortage of pedestrian walkways,
misuse and encroachment of the available space. A stakeholder who noted,
“The basic challenges of public transport accessibility in Addis Ababa is
that the infrastructure is not adequate and conveniently built”, also
highlighted these issues. One of the primary challenges of public transport
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 57
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

operations that are characterised by worn-out buses is that the cost of

maintenance escalates as the fleets age, with worsening fuel efficiency and
adverse environmental outcomes (Hao et al., 2014), particularly when
compared against modernised technological advances. From an
accessibility point of view, the buses are unreliable as they often face
breakdowns on the routes and even cause accidents due to technical faults
(Fenta, 2014). A dedicated fleet replacement and maintenance program
that would provide improvement to an acceptable level will demand, not
only a significant budget allocation, but also commitment of the regulators
and other government bodies (city and federal government) and
recruitment of skilled professionals and supporting technology
(Dagnachew, 2007). The bus serves the ten sub-cities of Addis Ababa and
neighbouring Oromia towns adjacent to the city via 18 routes. Despite this
large number of town administrations with a vested interest in to the
service, no financial support exists to maintain the enterprise or look after
the transit stations and shelters, (Tsegaye, 2015). The city bus has only four
terminals projecting from the city to the sub-cities and the Oromia towns
within a 40 km radius. Compared with the size of the city and surrounding
Oromia towns, the number of existing bus terminals, planning and
operation are inadequate (Tsegaye, 2015).
A further issue exacerbating this problem is that the installation and
management of Anbessa bus terminals in the Oromia towns lacks
ownership. Addis Ababa is an autonomous city under the Federal
Government, but is geographically located in Oromia Region. The
difference in administrative and political structure between the region and
the city has a negative impact on the accessibility of the city bus and the
infrastructure administration. One of the stakeholders confirmed this,
saying “there is no clear installation, ownership and management of the
bus stops/shelters in the routes of surrounding Oromia towns.”

Traffic Control, Law Enforcement and Safety

Addis Ababa has suffered from an increasing rate of traffic accidents and
an absence of a single, fully-fledged/consolidated traffic management
policy (Misganaw and Gebre-Yohannes, 2011; Yilma, 2014). Traffic
congestion arises from poor lane discipline by drivers, especially at traffic
junctions, which deteriorates the already overcrowded junction situation.
The drivers frequently disregard red lights and block the intersection,
causing further traffic congestion (Tulu et al., 2013). The problems are
58 Kenea et al.

compounded by poor enforcement practice as identified by the key

informants at the transport bureau. As one of the stakeholders mentioned:
“the traffic law enforcement system of the city is not adequately
implemented to enhance the traffic flow and accessibility of the city buses. ”
The traffic control system of the city is the purview of the traffic police,
and is reasonably labour intensive. There are no street cameras, and traffic
signals and marks are often inadequate. Traffic police are stationed at some
intervals on streets, highways and roundabouts to assist with traffic flow
and to enforce traffic law. Nonetheless, the traffic police are not always
available at these places especially at night and during wet weather (Yilma,
2014).
The behavioural patterns of the drivers, pedestrians, the law enforcement
authorities and even the regulators is strongly linked with the effectiveness
of the traffic control system and public transport accessibility. Public
transport drivers lack essential driving skills and customer service
behaviour, which results from a combination of weak training, low literacy,
young age and abuse of the licencing procedure by the regulatory bodies
(Yilak et al., 2011). One of the stakeholders said “the poor customer
service behaviour has originated from the poor perception, commitment
and expertise of the employees to show courtesy to the users”. The poor
customer service behaviour of the drivers and the cashiers has negative
psychosocial impacts on the city bus users. In Ethiopia, neither alcohol nor
drug testing is conducted to determine the cause of traffic accidents. The
law enforcement bodies lack road safety instruments like; radar and breath
analysers which hinder the implementation of speed control and alcohol
intoxication laws, although the drivers often consume alcohol or Chat, an
Ethiopian grown stimulant legally permitted to consume, while on driving
duties (Abegaz et al., 2014; Tulu et al., 2013). One of the stakeholders
from the operator stated, “there are ethical problems or complaints
coming from the community about employees.” In this case, the chance of
an accident is very high. Similarly, the community as pedestrians have less
awareness of road traffic and safety rules. The absence of pedestrian
walkways, combined with the use of (technically poor) worn-out vehicles
poses particular challenges to the traffic control system (Persson, 2008). A
stakeholder confirmed “the city’s mobility system is challenged by a mixed
traffic system in which pedestrians, vehicles and cattle transit on the same
lane.” In such an unrestrained mobility system, an intensive community
awareness, strong regulatory and law enforcement system, equipped with
modern technology and educated labour force can mitigate challenges
encompassing the road transport management of the city.
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 59
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

The operator’s financial incentive scheme to motivate the bus drivers and
cash collectors has a direct negative impact on the accessibility (safety and
comfort) of the users. Tsegaye (2015) indicated that the Enterprise pays an
amount of 0.03 Birr to bus drivers and 0.02 Birr to fare collectors, per
passenger, as an incentive package in the application of a business process
reengineering (BPR) system to motivate the employees to board more
passengers per trip. These employees obviously need to load more users at
each bus stop to increase their marginal revenue per passenger, at the
expense of other commuters’ preference. Here the strategy of the ‘BPR’
contradicts with the safety and comfort of commuters.

Fare Affordability

Studies indicate that 20 per cent of the population of Addis Ababa is still
too poor to afford the standard bus fare (Dagnachew, 2007). In contrast,
the stakeholders believe that the fare of Anbessa city bus is affordable to
the lower and middle-income group of the users that allows them to transit
long distances between two corners of the city and neighbouring towns.
One of them mentioned, “The fare is affordable to the lower class category
of the users.” The bus service has a system of flat fares for the route with
a range varying according to distance, owing to the continued willingness
of the city government to subsidize the services, in an atmosphere where
fares have long been frozen (Kassahun, 2007; Kumar and Barrett, 2008).
The affordability and long distance coverage of Anbessa is the principal
means to connect the low-income users living on the outskirts of the city
to the city centre.
On the other hand, concession is an incentive arrangement to encourage
the less privileged groups of the community such as students, pensioners
and people with disabilities to use the available public transport
(Carruthers et al., 2005). There is no literature or firsthand information
indicating that Anbessa bus has a fare arrangement for different social
groups demanding fare concessions, nor was this mentioned by the
stakeholders during the interviews.

Possible Accessibility Gap Interventions

Accessible public transport mobility is a cumulative result of reliable,

affordable, well-designed transport planning and built environment for
better service coverage (Nurlaela and Curtis, 2012). In contrast, the
60 Kenea et al.

inaccessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service is a combined effect of poor

infrastructure (i.e. worn-out and narrow routes, limited number of transit
stations, absence of dedicated and comfortable shelters), poor transport
planning and land use, traditional operation of the bus transport system and
weak financial capability of the operator. In this regard, an all-inclusive
policy and commitment of actors greatly influences the effectiveness of the
mobility system.
The reliability of the public transport system could be increased when an
adequate number of buses are engaged and the system is supported by an
intelligent transport system (ITS) to support information sharing, time
management and safety precautions (García et al., 2015). Though the buses
have a nominal timetable, the running times are not made public at all, and
are characterized by delays, crowding, overloading and low frequency,
hence resulting in unreliability and an increased susceptibility for fare
evasion (Dagnachew, 2007). Unfortunately, Anbessa city bus lacks the
application of ITS to promote its reliability, and the demand for public
transport service is much higher than the supply. The recruitment of
information technology, a skilled labour force and an adequate number of
buses relies on the financial capacity and commitment of the operator or
the city government to realise all-inclusive change. Anbessa has not been
working towards a vibrant business operation supported by a modern
transport management system to become more accessible to the users
(Gebeyehu and Takano, 2008 ; Kasahun, 2007).
Productive engagement of stakeholders from the government, private
transport business operators and the community could improve the existing
poor accessibility system of Anbessa city bus. This could be made through
provision of better roads and an intelligent transport system and
information communication technology (ICT) facilities for traffic
management. Possible intervention to foster the bus service could also be
made through structural and operational arrangements in a way that it
accommodates modern operation. It appears that a dynamic approach of
service provision necessitates capitalization of physical resources, right
sizing of organizations, reformation of work cultures, and development of
the human resources. Notwithstanding this, addressing all the concerns of
the inaccessibility of Anbessa city bus is a gradual phenomenon. It requires
allocation of significant resources across all the agencies and authorities in
the domain plus monitoring and evaluation of the transformation processes
and strategies.
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 61
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

5. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

In Addis Ababa, an accessible public transport is a collective outcome of

different actors and systems, interacting together efficiently and
effectively. Anbessa city bus service enterprise has been acknowledged as
a pioneer in Addis Ababa public transport service delivery, being a solely
government-owned long-standing entity in the city. Compared with the
private operators, it has a wider service coverage in Addis Ababa and the
neighbouring towns. Despite this, the bus has not grown to the required
level in the last seven decades, to match the ever-increasing demand in the
metropolitan and peri-urban areas.
It appears that Anbessa city bus service is not as easily accessible, as it
ought to be, due to an aggregate of factors. Literature reviews and
discussions held with the stakeholders indicate that the accessibility of the
bus is jeopardized partly by poor collaboration amongst the stakeholders,
weak institutional arrangements and little attention for the concern of the
public. Further, duplication of duties / absence of role clarities between the
institutions is hindering the accessibility of the city bus.
The results of this research imply that a well-structured traffic control
and law enforcement system requires better technology, infrastructure and
trained human resources in order to enhance the accessibility of public
transport in a rapidly growing urban population centre. The transport
system of Addis Ababa city is currently marred by traffic accidents,
congestion, inaccessibility and environmental pollution that are partly
created by lack of a sufficient infrastructure and traffic control system and
a weak regulatory framework in the city. Adequate infrastructure, transport
planning and operation play major role in enhancing the accessibility of
public transport.
Accessible Anbessa city bus service may not be as easy as implementing
operator level activities and accountabilities. It encompasses a wide range
of actors, policies and strategies enacted in the framework of each
jurisdiction. On the other hand, the effectiveness of providing accessible
public transport requires the commitment of each actor in an all-inclusive
fashion that extends accountability across the system. Overall, it could be
said that the inaccessibility of the Anbessa city bus service is not only the
consequence of the poor organizational and operational weaknesses of the
service providers, but also the effect of fragmented actions and
commitments of each entity. Future research should consider how the
existing difficulties could be curbed based on a reliable policy framework
62 Kenea et al.

that encompasses clear responsibility, jurisdiction and an extended line of

accountability for each actor.
Accessibility of Anbessa City Bus Service in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 63
an Analysis of Stakeholder Opinions

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