Dala dala

[2] Before minibuses became widely used, a truck with benches placed in the bed was the typical Tanzanian privately owned public transport.

[AICD 1] The dala dala developed as illegal taxis in Dar es Salaam, the largest city in Tanzania, due to a deteriorating system of government-run public transport in an environment of rising demand for such services.

[5] Further reforms in the late 1990s caused the amount of legal minibuses to swell, and between 1991 and 1998 their numbers rose by 450%.

[1] Called a mpigadebe, the name for dala dala conductors literally means "a person who hits a debe" (a 4-gallon tin container used for transporting gasoline or water) in reference to the fact that conductors will hit the roof and side of the van to attract customers and notify the driver when to leave a station.

[citation needed] These vehicles for hire have their routes allocated by a Tanzanian transport regulator, Land Transport Regulatory Authority (LATRA),[AICD 2] but syndicates (informal groups that fix fares, collect dues, and manage stations) also exist.