Dar es Salaam – Upcountry bus and lorry drivers across Tanzania went on strike on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, protesting a traffic penalty points system, licence suspensions, poor road conditions and the Vehicle Tracking System (VTS).

The stoppage, which began at about 6 a.m., disrupted long-distance travel and left hundreds of passengers stranded at the Magufuli Bus Terminal in Dar es Salaam as they waited for updates on their journeys.

The strike spread to several parts of the country, with drivers in Dar es Salaam, Dodoma, Mbeya, Songwe and Mwanza suspending trips. Among their complaints were the seizure of vehicles and suspension of driving licences, which drivers said threatened their livelihoods and disrupted the country’s long-distance passenger and freight transport network.

Some drivers at the main bus station in Moshi, Kilimanjaro, also refused to work for several hours, while buses bound for other regions and destinations within Mara Region sat parked at the Tarime terminal from the morning.

In Mbeya, Regional Commissioner Jumanne Sagini, accompanied by the regional security committee and Regional Police Commander SACP Benjamin Kuzaga, held talks with drivers in an effort to end the strike.

Mr Katambi arrived at the Mbezi Magufuli terminal in the evening of September 29 to meet drivers and stranded passengers. Addressing the crowd, he said the government had already received some of the drivers’ complaints, had acted on some of them, and that others were new.

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He said he wanted to hear directly from drivers before announcing any decision. “I am the Minister of Home Affairs — I have come to listen to you,” he said, adding that no one should be oppressed or favoured.

Police warning

Earlier in the day, the Commissioner of Operations and Training, CP Awadh Juma, told journalists in Dar es Salaam that blocking vehicles or sabotaging drivers was unlawful, and warned of strict legal action against anyone found doing so. He also stated that the licence points system had not yet come into use.

Ubungo District Commissioner Albert Msando ordered drivers back to their vehicles and passengers holding tickets to return to the buses they had booked, pending instructions from operators. He said the drivers’ demand was for senior leaders to come and hear them.

Mr Msando said operators who had sold tickets knowing their buses would not leave were committing fraud, and directed the Land Transport Regulatory Authority (LATRA) to contact bus owners. He added that regulations limit buses to two hours inside the terminal and that idle vehicles should return to their yards.

Passengers described confusion. Shabaan Manga, stranded in Dodoma on a journey from Dar es Salaam to Kaliua, Tabora, said drivers had offloaded passengers who had already paid, asking why they had not completed the trips first.

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Martha Mussa, travelling from Morogoro to Singida, said passengers were told the bus would stop for five minutes, only to be left stuck. “Some are sick, others have children,” she said, appealing for government help.

What the system does

The demerit points system, introduced through Government Notice No. 420, gives each driving licence 15 points, deducted according to the type and severity of an offence.

According to Abdul Nondo, chairperson of the youth wing of the opposition party ACT Wazalendo, the regulations list 35 offences, with most — including speeding, not wearing a seatbelt, drink-driving and driving uninsured — carrying three points.

He said a licence exhausted of points is suspended for six months; a second exhaustion brings a 12-month suspension and demotion to the lowest licence class; third and fourth instances carry suspensions of 36 and 72 months.

In a public statement, Mr Nondo said the parent law, the Road Traffic Act, Chapter 168, provides for a points system and empowers the minister to make regulations on how it operates, and that the amending regulations were issued on July 11, 2025.

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However, he argued the regulations exceeded the parent Act by penalising drivers for owners’ offences, rely heavily on traffic police discretion, ignore poor road infrastructure, and impose double punishment through fines and point deductions. He proposed a cap on daily deductions and rewarding offence-free driving with restored points.

Drivers’ grievances

Drivers argue that some offences, such as worn-out tyres or mechanical defects, should be the responsibility of vehicle owners or employers, and fear that accumulated penalties could lead to suspensions that cost them their livelihoods.

In Moshi, bus driver Emmanuel Singine said a driver fined Sh30,000 still loses points, and called for responsibility to be divided between driver and owner depending on the offence.

Driver Adam Marunda said 15 points could be exhausted on a single three-day trip to Kigoma. He alleged that drivers whose licences are confiscated for minor lane infractions are asked by regional traffic officers for Sh500,000 to avoid a six-month suspension, against a trip allowance of Sh60,000.

Joseph Mwita, a driver in Dodoma, said drivers face repeated checkpoint inspections on poorly maintained roads. He told The Chanzo: “Every law that is made is for the driver. The roads are bad and are not repaired; but it is only the driver.”

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Mustapha Mwalongo, spokesperson for the Tanzania Bus Owners Association (TABOA), confirmed the strike, saying drivers wanted their concerns over possible licence suspensions addressed, and Tanzania Truck Owners Association chairperson Elias Lukumay said drivers’ main fear was losing their jobs.

Government position

In a public statement on September 19, 2026, Mr Katambi said the government had begun trialling the system to control road safety offences and reduce accidents, under 2014 regulations amended in 2025.

He said no punishment would be imposed during the trial, which is intended to measure offence rates while the police and Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) systems are integrated and stakeholders are educated.

He said countries using such systems had cut harm from driver-caused offences by more than 80 per cent. He also cited the use of AI-enabled cameras on some major roads as part of the strategy.

ACT Wazalendo called for Mr Katambi’s resignation, saying the government had a chance to engage drivers before the dispute escalated, and criticised it for describing the system as a trial while drivers were already facing fines and suspensions.

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The party demanded the system’s immediate suspension and a review of the regulations in consultation with drivers and transport stakeholders. The strike followed a warning on September 17, 2026 by drivers in Mwanza, who threatened to halt services from September 29 over licence suspensions.

Road transport carries much of Tanzania’s and the region’s trade: trucks leave Dar es Salaam port daily for Zambia, Burundi, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

This is not the first such confrontation to occur in Tanzania. In 2015, drivers staged a strike after government-made promises were not fulfilled, following an earlier stoppage that led her to announce the suspension of new driver regulations.

Other complaints centred on the three-year re-examination requirement, lack of recognition, poor treatment, and a demand for concrete implementation on the part of authorities rather than further dialogue.

As of Tuesday evening, drivers said they would await the outcome of talks with authorities before returning to the road. Talks with the government were ongoing by late Tuesday evening when this report was finalised.