Matatu

In Kenya, matatu or matatus (known as mathree in Sheng)^{[citation needed]} are privately owned minibuses used as share taxis.^[1] Often decorated, many matatu feature portraits of famous people or slogans and sayings.^[2] Likewise, the music they play is also aimed at quickly attracting riders.^[3] Over 70% of commuter trips are taken using matatu in cities like Nairobi.^[4]

Although their origins can be traced back to the 1960s, matatu saw growth in Kenya in the 1980s and 1990s, The matatu culture sprung up under the influence of widespread hip-hop music and culture by black Americans in the 1980s. By the early 2000s, the archetypal form was a (gaily decorated) Japanese microvan.^[5] C. 2015, larger, bus-sized vehicles also started to be used as matatu. The name may also be used in parts of Nigeria.^[6] In Kenya, this industry is regulated,^[7] and such minibuses must, by law, be fitted with seatbelts^[8] and speed governors.^[9][8] Present regulation may not be sufficient deterrent to prevent small infractions^[10] as even decoration may be prohibited.^[9] Kenya has one of the "most extensive regulatory controls to market entry",^[11] and a matatu worker can be pulled from the streets simply for sporting too loud a shirt.^[12]

They may ply set routes,^[13] display this route,^[10] run from termini,^[8][14] run both inter and intra-city,^[13][15] and may stop along said route to purchase or collect money from passengers.^[16] In addition to a driver, matatu may be staffed by a conductor,^[17] locally known as a makanga or manamba or donda. As of 1999, they were the only form of public transport available in Nairobi, Kenya, although in 2006 and 2008 this was no longer the case. Over the years, stiff competition^[18] is being experienced from bus-sharing applications such as SWVL.^[19]