By Foday Moriba Conteh
As part of their effort towards shaping new rules that will guide public transportation across the country, Sierra Leone Public Transport Authority (SLPTA) has on Friday 5th December, 2025 concluded a one-day stakeholders’ consultation meeting on the draft Public Transport Tariffs and Fare Regulations 2025 and the Public Transport Licences Regulation held at the SLPTA Office at the Bus Station in Freetown.
The meeting brought together representatives from transport unions, Civil Society Organizations and the media to review the draft regulations that will guide future operations within the public transport system.
Addressing the gathering, Isaac Ken-Green, Director General of the Sierra Leone Public Transport Authority (SLPTA), expressed appreciation to stakeholders and institutions including the Ministry of Information and Civic Education and the media for supporting national dialogue on transport sector reforms. He underscored the importance of stakeholder engagement in shaping effective and inclusive regulations, noting that transport remains one of the largest sectors in the country but had long operated without a specific regulatory authority.
Isaac Ken-Green explained that the Sierra Leone Public Transport Authority was established through an Act of Parliament passed on 24 April 2023, after Government and international development partners, including the World Bank, recognized the urgent need to address gaps in regulation, operational standards and public safety.
“For a long time, transport operators were functioning without a proper regulatory body,” he noted. “While telecommunications, aviation and other sectors have established regulators, transport did not have any institution responsible for setting rules, monitoring compliance or ensuring safety. This created a vacuum in which anyone could operate without clear standards.”
He said the new Authority has been mandated to regulate all forms of public transport including buses, taxis, tricycles, Okadas, trucks and other motor transport operators while building a structured framework for licensing and tariff administration.
According to him, the drafted regulations are designed to “put flesh on the mandate” given to the Authority by Parliament by outlining rules governing operations, tariffs, safety obligations and stakeholder relations.
Isaac Ken-Green informed participants that the proposed regulations are still preliminary and would undergo further review, including parliamentary scrutiny, before adoption. He described the consultation as a crucial stage in gathering public input and ensuring that the final regulations reflect the concerns and realities of operators and passengers across the country.
“We expect your ideas and contributions, because the regulatory process must involve the people it will affect,” he added. “That is why we have called this open discussion to listen, clarify and improve the documents before they are taken to Parliament.”
On his part, the Deputy Director General of the Sierra Leone Public Transport Authority (SLPTA), Christian N. Ngombu Esq., presented the draft Public Transport Tariffs and Fares Regulations 2025 and the draft Public Transport Licenses Regulation.
Delivering the first presentation, Christian N. Ngombu explained that the Tariffs and Fares Regulations are being formulated in accordance with Section 41 of the SLPTA Act of 2023 and are aimed at ensuring affordability, transparency and financial sustainability in the public transport system. He said the regulations will apply to all public road transport services, including buses, minibuses, taxis, tricycles and commercial motorbikes.
He noted that the draft regulations outline categories of fares, including urban commuter services, inter-district travel, rental services and special transport services, with a standardized approach to fare setting. The proposed framework also introduces concessionary fares for students, elderly citizens, persons with disabilities and beneficiaries of social protection programmes.
Christian N. Ngombu further highlighted that the regulations provide for an annual review mechanism using a price-cap formula that takes into account inflation and fuel price movements, while also allowing for extraordinary reviews in situations such as major fuel price changes, natural disasters or emergencies that significantly affect transport operations.
The second presentation focused on the draft Public Transport Licenses Regulation, which establishes a licensing regime for operators based on service classification and vehicle type. According to Christian N. Ngombu, the objective is to set transparent rules for licensing, promote fair competition and ensure safe, reliable and efficient public transport services.
He noted that public transport vehicles will be classified into three main categories buses and minibuses, taxis and rental vehicles, and motor tricycles and motorbikes while specific operational requirements such as electronic ticketing, digital metering and tracking systems will apply to different vehicle types.
Representing the CSOs, Alphonso Manley, National Coordinator, Civil Rights Coalition, welcomed the draft regulations, describing them as a long-overdue step toward cleaning up a sector that has operated for years without a central regulatory framework, noting that the introduction of clear rules on licensing, fare structures and operational standards would help reduce exploitation, improve transparency and promote fairness between transport operators and commuters.
He called for wider public consultations beyond Freetown, continuous stakeholder engagement and effective monitoring systems to prevent abuse of power, arbitrary fare increases and weak enforcement once the regulations come into force.
On the transport union, the representative said the proposed regulations as timely, particularly in addressing long-standing concerns around licensing, standard operating procedures and fare determination mechanisms.
He pointed out that with the expansion of public transport services nationwide, operators need a coordinated system that clarifies roles and responsibilities while promoting professionalism across the industry.
At the same time, he urged the SLPTA to ensure that the new framework does not impose excessive financial burdens on drivers and transport owners.
The consultation ended with a question-and-answer session, during which participants provided additional feedback. The Sierra Leone Public Transport Authority (SLPTA) committed to sharing soft copies of the draft regulations with all stakeholders to enable further review and submission of written inputs.
