IMPROVED ACCESSIBILITY OF BUS RAPID TRANSIT FOR SCHOOL-GOING CHILDREN: A CASE OF BUS RAPID TRANSIT PHASE 1 IN DAR ES SALAAM CITY, TANZANIA

In highly urbanizing cities, public transport is the main mode of transport. However, it is faced with many challenges of which Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) was introduced to address them. Despite of BRT introduction in the African developing countries, its accessibility to school-going children remains a challenge. Therefore, the objective of this study was to fill the knowledge gap of school-going children accessibility to BRT stations, operational challenges and safety issues. A mixed-method approach was employed in this study, combining both qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques. The sample size was 80 respondents. Open Data Kite (ODK) compatible with android phones was used for data collection and analysis. Findings of the study shows that there are no favorable conditions for school-going children while using BRT services. The key issues are three. Firstly, accessibility of BRT stations in-terms of distance and time; secondly, operational challenges in-terms of insufficient number of buses dedicated for school-going children, ticketing problems and passengers’ overcrowding; and thirdly, safety issues. It is concluded that BRT services have improved transportation for school-going children. However, it is recommended for further improvements in-terms of providing subsidy for school-going children instead of providing dedicated buses for them, increasing the number of buses and improved accessibility while boarding the BRT stations and buses.