Casablanca will take out a loan of nearly 444 million dirhams to acquire 350 buses currently held by Alsa Al Baida. A substantial portion of this sum will first be used to settle the operator’s related bank debt.
The increase in urban and suburban public transport fares in Greater Agadir, implemented by the delegated company Alsa since last Monday, is causing a wave of protest among regular users. This increase, which came after the commissioning of a new fleet of smart buses and the end of the African Cup of Nations competitions, particularly impacts the budget of students and workers who depend on the network for their daily commutes.
Long the undisputed master of bus transportation in the major cities of the kingdom, the Spanish group Alsa sees its hegemony waver. The ONCF, through its road subsidiary Supratours, wins key contracts such as Marrakech, marking a turning point towards a more national management of mobility.
Supratour takes over the management of buses in Marrakech . This change marks the abrupt end of a 26-year monopoly for the Spanish company Alsa, which sees its empire crumbling in Morocco after already losing the Agadir market.
Alsa will have new competitors in Morocco. The Spanish operator established in the kingdom since 1999 in Marrakech, then in Agadir and Tangier, could lose most of its urban transport concessions.
The increase in fares by the Rabat-Salé Tramway Company (STRS) and Alsa City Bus, the operator of the bus network serving Rabat, Salé and Témara, has provoked the anger of users.
Alsa, a bus operator in Casablanca since 2019, is demanding that the municipality pay a cumulative debt of 40 million euros.
Due to a lack of skilled labor in Spain, Alsa wants to recruit drivers in Morocco.
The wilaya of the Casablanca-Settat region announced that it has exchanged with the managers of the Alsa company, which has recently integrated the Polisario flag into the on-board wifi system of its buses.
The Spanish transport company Alsa recorded a 21% growth in its turnover in Morocco during the first three months of 2022.
A passenger on a bus serving line 38R3 was assaulted and robbed of her mobile phone and wallet last Thursday around 5 a.m. on Boulevard Al Aakid Al Allam in Casablanca. Fortunately, the aggressor was intercepted by 3 inspectors who were able to subdue him, before alerting the police.
To alleviate the suffering of the people of Casablanca in their urban travels, a new fleet of buses has been put into service. By the end of 2021, the total number of latest generation buses will reach 700, said Mehdi Safwane, CEO of Alsa Al-Baida.