Safaricom has partnered with Public Service Vehicles (PSVs) to provide free WiFi to commuters through Safaricom WiFi routers installed in their vehicles. The service, dubbed Vuma Online, will give customers the opportunity to remain connected to unlimited 3G internet without having to use their existing bundles. This initiative is in line with Safaricom’s plans to increase internet penetration in the country.
The plan is to have more than more than 200 matatus and buses having WiFi by September this year. At the moment 46 PSV vehicles plying the Buruburu, Langata, Rongai, Umoja, Githurai, Dandora, Kiambu and Kenyatta University routes are offering WiFi to commuters. Buses on the Nairobi- Mombasa route will also offer the service.
The PSV’s that have the WiFi service will charge extra.
Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore had this to say about the say at the launch:
“Most of our customers use Matatu’s and buses as their preferred mode of transport on a day to day basis. This therefore presents us with a fantastic opportunity to drive home the internet story and make it a way of life among our customers which we believe we will achieve by availing FREE Wi-Fi internet in matatus,â€
“This is a very exciting phase for the PSV sector. We have a lot of innovation put into buses and matatu’s over the years, but this is a major milestone. With over 300,000 Kenyans using public transport every day, we believe having Wi-Fi in PSV’s will go a long way in making our passengers commute worthwhile†Matatu Owners Association Chairman, Simon Kimutai
Martin Gicheru of Techweez shot the video below at the launch.