The constraint is parking, not the streets
Assuming a safe driving width of 3 metres, 17 of 27 tested roads are inaccessible to buses as currently used, with another two only centimetres over the threshold. The limiting factor is not the built width of the streets but the space occupied by parked vehicles along them.
Why route coverage matters
With few passable roads, bus routes and stops stay limited, walks to stops in the heat stay long, and relying on a bus is not practical for most trips. When more roads can fit buses, routes can multiply, stops move closer to doorsteps, and frequency can rise – the conditions that make public transport a real alternative to motorcycles. Public Policy Lab’s route analysis also proposes specific changes, including extending the Carnival route to Jumhooree Maidaan so the government district is served directly.
Space efficiency
A person on a motorcycle, including safety buffer space, occupies around 36 square feet of road. A seated bus passenger takes up about 4 square feet. The road space of 18 motorcycles – roughly 650 square feet – carries 18 people who would fit in a single double-decker bus footprint of about 36 square feet.
Key facts
- Only 10 of 27 Malé roads measured have enough clear width for buses; 26 of 27 would with street parking cleared.
- At a 3-metre safe driving width, 63% of tested Malé roads are currently inaccessible to buses.
- One person on a motorcycle occupies around 36 square feet of road space; a seated bus passenger occupies about 4.
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