MADAGASCAR: Taxi Be And Taxibrousse In Madagascar

The counterpart of the famous bush taxis or Taxibrousse in Madagascar is the so-called Taxi Be, in English simply „big taxi“. They run exclusively in the urban traffic of bigger cities or suburbs and do short overland trips. You can easily recognize them by the colourful stripe leading all around the minivan, and big numbers behind the windscreen. The different colours represent different trip routes: This way everyone can understand the destination of the Taxi Be, even without being illiterate.

The most used vehicles are Mercedes minivans, imported from Europa and completely rebuilt in Madagascar. Instead of the original seats or load platform, there are up to seven few comfortbale seat rows. In the middle of the van, there is a small aisle to reach all seats. If one row is filled with people, a wooden board is placed over the aisle to create another seat. This way, the bus quickly becomes tight and crowded, and each entrance or exit becomes a little adventure.

More than 20 people per bus are normal in Madagascar. The rear door stays open and is attached to the ceiling with a small rope. A helper stands on the rear edge to open and close the door with the rope for guests. He is also whom you pay your drive as soon as you are in. But there is no really working timetable. Typically Madagascar, “mora mora” – “slowely, slowely” is a Taxi Be mantra.

A Taxi Be starts when it starts, mostly only roughly following the official schedule. Each route has several busses. Besides regular bus stops, Taxi Be tend to pick up or leave out people along the way. Luggage is put on the roof and much looslier fixed than on TaxiBrouuse, which makes dishes or baskets fall down to the street sometimes. Generally, Taxi Be do not drive at night, but in the time between five o’clock in the morning and at the latest eight o’clock in the evening.

Since the minivans are mainly in poor, rusty condition, a drive with a Taxi Be is only limitedly recommendable. Indeed due to the shorter trip, fewer dadly accidents happen than with TaxiBrousse, but pickpockets and tire failures are usual. In return, a drive mostly costs less than 500 Ariary (15-20 Eurocent), which makes the TaxiBe one of the cheapest transportations of Madagascar.

Up to date, Taxi Be are run by different entreprises in Antananarivo, Antsirabe, Tomasaina (French Tamatave), Mahajanga (Majunga), Fianarantsoa and Toliara (Tuléar). For the capital, Antanananrivo, there exists eben a Smartphone App with the existing Taxi Be lines.