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Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Bolt Uganda has added a 12-hour time cap for drivers on the ride-hailing platform.
The working time limit is in place to ensure that drivers arrive for trips energized and rejuvenated.
The restriction on the number of hours also allows drivers to prioritize other engagements such as family needs, recreational, educational, and entrepreneurial activities.
Starting this month, after spending up to 12 hours of driving with Bolt, the app will notify the driver to take a 6-hour break.
“Bolt strongly supports driver safety and believes in leveraging technology to develop ways of working that make transportation safer,” Moses Mugerwa, the Bolt Uganda operations manager said in a notice dated Sept.14.
He added: “You will need to be offline for 6 hours before your driving hour timer is reset and you can start driving again after.
He said the restrictions are meant to prevent accidents caused by drowsy driving and are already in place in some countries.
Bolt is now broadening the rule to all their global riders and drivers that use its app.
According to traffic police records for the last four years, at least 2,634 pedestrians and cyclists are killed on Ugandan roads each year.
Mugerwa also stated that because there are government guidelines in place to combat the ongoing pandemic, Bolt operates until the assigned curfew times, which are 6 p.m. for boda bodas and 7 p.m. for vehicles, and then turns off during curfew times.
Mugerwa said the Bolt app help their riders to keep track of their time and make roads safer for both drivers and riders.
