Fez – Abdeslam Bakkali, the new mayor of Fez, has denounced the dismal conditions of the city’s public transportation and vowed to take action to improve the city’s services.
Speaking on November 8, Bakkali particularly took issue with City Bus, Fez’s main public transportation supplier.
The newly-elected mayor inquired about the rickety and decrepit buses that currently circulate in the city and which the company should have discarded by 2018 Bakkali highlighted that “122 buses must no longer operate”, as per the specification manual. The freshly elected mayor stated that this scarcity in the bus fleet and worsening services of public transportation, gives him the authority to intervene and put an end to the crisis.
Accordingly, he called on the company to provide 194 brand new buses. “Any further delay and the company will be penalized on a daily basis – a penalty that may reach 100,000 MAD [$11,104].”
The assembly assigned a judicial commissioner who notified the transportation supplier about the decision with a deadline of 30 days before it enters into effect.
The transportation group had previously increased the cost of students’ monthly-subscription cards. The decision caused widespread outrage among students and the decision was eventually cancelled by the communal assembly and local authorities.
The company has been the city’s main supplier of public transportation services since September 1, 2012. It possesses a bus fleet of 252 buses and covers 439 km with 51 bus routes.
