I have not really been a proponent of the “transport gratis”system. After all, I have not been privileged, having finished school a bit too early to benefit from this and having still a lot of time to go pu vin ‘3eme age’ so that I don’t pay 
Ive always seen this scheme as being a foolish one adopted by the govt as all this money could have been diverted towards more productive usage.
How many times have we seen elderly people using the bus and smiling smuggly at the bus receiver while showing their ID/transport card. How many times have we just looked at those people angrily n jealously coz they got a seat and we had to stand !Oh God how we must have loathed them at that moment wen we had to stand for whole “trajet”!! So many times we would take the bus n got pushed by those “dadi’s & les mami” barging their way to enter the bus first. I even once got pushed, shoved, thrusted to one side of the crowd by their bags and bodies.. or we could get remarks as “Ban zenfan zordi zour, péna maniere!! Laisse mo rentrer mo beti/beta!!”...Sometimes I would see some old persons taking the bus and stop at the next bus stop! I often thought to myself: Can’t they do some bit of exercise and walk!! 
We have all been witnesses of such situations before and felt like that. But, whether we agree or not, those elderly persons are mere victims of this disorganized, messy system.
They are in fact being more and more abused by bus receivers and conductors. We all heard stories about the bus not stopping to take them on as they don’t pay. I even read yesterday in l’Express that NTA has taken punitive measures against those who have behaved in a non-civilized way towards our elderly. Some have been suspended from work..But ,will this really be a detriment??
Today, during the MBC news (which I have watched after such a long time!), I saw that the National Transport Corporation (NTC) launched new buses yesterday, and no need to add that the MBC was glorifying that”NTC will be able to provide better services to the citiziens”…n so much blabla on NTC.
But they forgot to add that on the very same at around 7.15 a.m on one of their brand-new bus (with air-con, seatbelts, etc) an old lady was PHYSICALLY ABUSED/MIS-TREATED !!! Yet again the elderly is harassed just because she had the misfortune of being too old and benefiting from the TRansport-Gratuit…
This time the bus conductor conciously and cruelly blocked her with the door !! U imagine the poor woman got the closing door pressing againgt her ribs such that she couldn’t move..being stuck!!! She even had to plead/beg the bus driver to let her go!!
Better service is not only about brand-new buses with lots of gadgets, music, air-con etc!! WE NEED QUALITY SERVICE from those working in those bus!!
Filed under: News
It seems it is a lot of rudeness over there. Unfortunately, I got to know it and I have to deal with it even from distance.
I think it will take a LOT of time until things will change in the way people treat others.
Many times in US I had really heavy bags with me in the bus. When I had to get off the bus, the bus driver lowered the whole bus (from his own initiative) in order for me to walk outside the bus at the same level with the sidewalk. I was so amazed! And I am not at all old, handicaped, etc.
Not to mention that people do not push each other inside the bus, or treat bad the elderly.
Somebody to pass with the bus and not stop??? I never saw that.
It is a matter of respect towards the one next to you. And in US there is real respect for the elderly and people with health problems.
Not to mention that 99% of the drivers tell you to watch your step, wish you to have a wonderful day or weekend, and things like that.
When will this be happening in Mauritius?
I think that one way to improve something in this direction is by education made through media, training of the bus drivers before hiring them or something similar.
You are doing a great job with your posts, Ishtiba. I appreciate your honesty and courage to speak out your opinion about what is going on there.
Nice new theme. i like it. N yeah i also think that the Transport Gratis is a big waste of money(mem si li dan mo l’avantage). Should have been something more ‘cibler’ surtout a banne au bas de l’echelle.
Enfin, yeah one other thing…sent all the team an email on last saturday but noone replied me. am i out for not being there that saturday.??……
lol transport gratis enkor..
lots of time mo ine argue avek toi lor sa topic la..
bon dakor transport gratis ti ene measure populaire pou gagne vote pou election.. et mo pas croire ki gouvernment pou backup lor sa decision la. enfin mo ene beneficiE de sa et mo pas capve tro complain.
sakun so chance live with it lol
mais treatment ki banens vieux dimoune pe subir la ouff.. pas facile..
lol a propos bannela voyage gratis et gagne place pou assiZe tou .. bein mo pas trouve sa vraiment difficile pou accepT.. mais quand banens policiEr pe assize lor zotte pooum et quand zotte pas payE.. sa enervant!!
franchement si mo ti pou dan sa bus to ine mentionE la.. mo ti pou fou ene tapaz!!
kifer li pas ine laisse sa dimoune la renTre.. pas ti ena place? ou parceki li pas payE? NTC compagnie ha.. zotte la paye fix.. mem si ena dimoune ki pas payE ki servi bus la.. so what the hell!
pe gagne envi craze conductor la so figuire.. mais enfin li ousi li pou vine vieux!! damn him!
well, i have to admit that i haven’t been in touch with news in Mauritius a lot lately. have been in the uk for the past 5 months.
but when i was in Mauritius, i was taking the bus everyday to go to work and i have to admit that i do agree with you Tiba to an extent.
hmm, as for the new buses which were launched, well i’d like to take a look at them and see what they are like (will be able to do so in a week!).
there’s something else that i’ve noticed about our buses that i wish something could be done about.
have you guys noticed how high the stairs are to climb into the bus? i know that many of us are young and athletic, and hence that doesn’t really cause a problem to youngsters… but what about our old people?
so many of them suffer from physical problems! some have to go around with walking sticks, some suffer from arthritis! and they are forced to climb those horrible stairs, while people are pushing at them from behind…
an incident of this sort happened with one of my family members, who suffers from arthritis and who was being badgered from the back to get onto the bus and my family member ended up falling down the stairs :’-S
i was so mad, completely pissed off (sorry for use of language…), but ended up doing nothing about it.
but i think it’s time something is done about it. at least to make the authorities aware of how they are causing pain and tension to our elderly. and to make sure that next time they think of launching new buses, they make the steps more like steps and less like hiking!!!! (to ensure the safety of everyone, small kids, our elders… and even the young adults!)
Sometimes I do feel that the old people profiter imP.
there are many that do not do anything at home but they will always take the bus at peak hours.This is very painful and you are almost forced to give them your place.
Seulement sa controlleur la pas ti gagne droit fer sa…Li fer sa are vieux dimoune
To ti bizin prend numero bus la…Ti ava fer so fete…
EVERYDAY i see this, and everyday i say “ahh si seulement ti ena 1 moyen electronique ki mo kapav avoye 1 sms pou report sa cas la, mais gouvernment pa pou rod acceptE sa projet la mo croire”
Controllerr NTC pena maniere, zot bien bien bien arierE et ti lesprit.
Actually, they use the support of the law when it is to their advantage, and forgets the existence of the law when it is disadvantageous for em.
Before allowing ppl to get their bus conductors badge, they must be taught manners.
Frankly, I am happy that bus conductors are brutalized, they always say that they fear for their security, but the real thing is that, the security risks are usually created by themselves, they provoke ppl.
A few NTC bus conductors and drivers must be killed by some angry passengers so as the rest of NTC workers learn manners i believe.
et aprE zot dir ki psycopath et murderers c bann fleau de la societE, pourtant, bien bizin zot l’aide la!
+selven
elo everyone….
i may have read this article the time i was a student, benefiting from transport gratis…
now, am no more a student, and hence, i have another point of view on this matter…. not that bad but still…
the days when everyone walked to their colleges, some 3-5 bus stops away from their homes, u could at least get 1 place in the bus, but nowadays, when u enter a bus, its full of students, getting out of the bus, 2 bus stops away, at the college nearest bus stop…
as a ‘worker’, i now find it harsh when i cant get into any bus during peak hours koz students have filled those buses….
not even a standing place!!!
as vicks said, it was a political promise, which helped the party win…a winning formula….