Male’ City Council has decided to begin public transport services in Villimale’ after terminating the contract to establish a buggy service.
Villimale’ is an eco-friendly island where vehicles with combustion engines are banned. Residents of Villimale’ generally use battery-powered scooters or vehicles for transport across the island.
The first environment-friendly buggy service in the Maldives was established in Villimale' in 2014. Male' City Council had given the approval to Ninety Nine Holdings Limited to establish its 99 Eco Cab services on the island. The buggy service was introduced as an environment-friendly alternative to regular taxi services.
However, Male’ City Council stated that it has received numerous public complaints related to the company not operating the buggy service in accordance with the contract. The city council stated that its investigation has concluded that the company has not been providing adequate services and that work is ongoing to terminate the contract.
As part of the contract, Ninety Nine Holdings was issued two plots of land in Villimale’ to build a ticket terminal and vehicle parking area. However, the city council stated that the land plots were not used to provide adequate services to the residents. In order to solve the issue, the city council decided to begin public transport services in Villimale’ within the next three months.