Public transport gets worse

The battered yellow taxi is the most common form of public transport here in Monrovia. The whole economy revolves around taxis, since so few people have their own cars. Many people leave their homes at 5am just to make sure they can catch a taxi in the morning before the rush hour begins, when it can often take more than an hour to catch a taxi. And every evening I see people fighting others to get seats for the journey home. Traditionally, two passengers sit on the front passenger seat, and four sit across the back, but earlier this week the Liberian National Police decided that only one passenger should sit in the front (which I admit makes good road safety sense). But this means that the number of seats available in the public transport system has been reduced overnight by 16%, which means even earlier starts and longer delays and more fights for the public seeking transportation. And it is now even harder for much needed fresh produce to be bought to the market from the countryside, and the price of fresh produce in town has already gone up to reflect this. In the long term, the economy will suffer even more, and the city's children will continue to go hungry. Olly