CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

In so many countries there are major investment which are being made in public transportation to make them more competitive with other means of transport in most cases private cars. New services are being developed and old ones are being improved upon. However, and increase in the supply will not lead to an increase in the demand satisfaction. To ensure that investment attracts the existing and potential customers expected, knowledge of satisfaction should provide operational managers in the public transportation system with valuable information. For many years’ public transport has been seen as an unavoidable need in several part of the world (Cervero and Golub,2007). IILES 2005, stated that immobility leads to poverty. This means the movement of people and goods affects the daily activities of human beings particularly in the economic aspects.

A good transport system cannot be gotten if there are no effective and efficient services that enhance the living standards of people and gives them satisfaction through features such as affordability, efficiency, availability and economically importance for development. Commonly, identified urban transport problems in many Cameroonian cities are long waiting time for buses, traffic, congestion, parking difficulties, air pollution and traffic accidents (Ashiedu,2011). This is because of the increasing travel demand and performances for using private vehicles in most cities in Cameroon (Banjo 2008) to prevent more problems caused by the rise in demand for urban transport and increase in private motorization. It is highly recommended by many researchers as well as public decision-makers to provide an attractive public transport mode in many cities (banjo 2008).

Furthermore, divers are fund of delaying passengers before takeoff to their various destinations in most urban cities in Cameroon. Other issues around passengers’ dissatisfaction are the ill manner of drivers, lack of good relationship, drinking habits and money driven behavior among others. Anderson, Baggett and Widener (2007) supported that these are indication of operational failure and they affect passenger satisfaction.

Public transport should become a solution for sustainable transport in the future. However, to keep and attract more passengers, public transport must have high quality service to satisfy and fulfill a wide range of customer’s needs (Anabel 2005). The transport service industry comprises several modes which range from air, water, railways, pipeline and road transport.

The transportation industry has a huge share to the contribution of growth of one country and can make an economy strong and it is just in the economy as there is the back bone in the human body. Modern and fast transportation systems plays new roles and makes the life of common consumers as well as businessmen easy.

1.2. Delimitation

1.2.1. Spatial Delimitation

Here it is based on the location of the case study of the research. The case study of this research was Vatican Express Company Ltd. The study was carried out in Cameroon in the North West Region, Bamenda at City Chemist close to Fokou Construtions Sonac Street. This bus park offers services like transportation of passengers to other urban cities. Vatican express company limited ltd is a transportation agency that has branches in Cameroon like Yaoundé, Douala, Buea and Limbe where they are various bus stops in each region.

1.2.2. Time Delimitation

In this case we will see the time frame between which the research was carried out at Vatican Express Company Ltd. This research started in January 2023 and ended in July 2023. Chapter 1 was written between early January 2023 and the rest of the chapters were written while on the field based on the research on Vatican Express Company Ltd.

1.2.3 .Thematic Delimitation.

The research was conducted on the impact of inter cities transportation services and effects on passengers. The case study Vatican Express Company Ltd.

1.3. Problem Statement

Traditionally, under the competitive market environment, the rival companies in an industry of transport in particular focuses to lower rate to win more market share, increase sales and hence more profit again. To a large extent, the bottom line indicators of the performance of feign and passenger road transport is the operating cost per ton or tonne km (per passengers or passenger-km). level of service aspects such as travel time, reliability, safety, comfort and security are also important as well as environmental impact.

Currently most transport service providers shift into improving the service quality of their service rather than relying on bus fare adjustment to improve business performance even though the production cost will probably increase as they improve service quality, the transport firm acquires a sustainable competitive advantage over its rivals (Fimbo 2008).

The population of Bamenda municipality is increasing significantly and the size of the city is expanding. As the number of passengers using public transport also increase, to accommodate the increasing number of passengers’ transport services are expected to expand. However, the supply of transport services is not proportionate to the demand. Due to limited number of buses as well as roads, poor people who cannot afford other modes of transport are exposed to walking long distances and waiting and travel time.

The major issue facing public transportation in Cameroon and Bamenda to be specific is that most travel agencies do not respect the codes and conducts of public transportation. Most drivers have a habit of overloading passengers and goods which often results in fatal accidents. Also there are no respectful schedule time for takeoff and landing of buses which often results in long waiting time for customers. Most vehicles do not have proper safety and security measures put in place to avoid the loss of life and property damage to their customers. This often results to most passengers opting to use private cars which often not registered under the state control means of transportation over public transportation agencies such as Vatican. Thus the current study sought to examine passengers’ satisfaction which inter-cities transportation services in Cameroon with VATICAN BUS LTD as case study.

1.4. Research Question

1.4.1. Main Research Question

What is the impact of inter-cities transportation services and effects on passengers?

1.4.2. Specific Research Questions

• Are passengers satisfied with inter-cities transportation services in Cameroon?
• What are the factors influencing passengers use of inter-cities transportation services in Cameroon?
• What are the challenges faced by intercity transportation to meet the demands of its customers?

1.5. Research Objectives

1.5.1. Main Research Objectives

To evaluate the impact of inter-cities transportation services and effect on passengers

1.5.2. Specific Objectives

• To examine passengers’ satisfaction with inter-cities transportation services in Cameroon.
• Evaluate the factors influencing passenger use of inter-cites transportation services in Cameroon.
• To identify major challenges faced by inter-cities transportation bus services to meet the demands of its customers.