Société des transports Abidjanais

Before 1960, the public transport was made Abidjan in the traditional way with pinnaces on the lagoon and the van s brand Renault commonly called "thousand pounds" and carrying twenty passengers on a fixed route. Of cars carrying fewer than a dozen passengers on a fairly regular route and some taxi s completed means of displacement.

The 16 is created Abidjan Transport Company (SOTRA), a mixed economy company whose capital is owned 35% by the Ivorian government and 65% by private partners. SOTRA, under supervision of the Minister of Public Works and Transport, appears therefore as the first company organized urban transport of West Africa.

A concession agreement public service signed between the Ivorian government and SOTRA grants it the exclusive service transit passengers in the city of Abidjan. This agreement also provides for the removal vans called "thousand pounds" and other collective means of public transport, excluding taxis. From July 1964, the monopoly of Sotra the public transport passenger becomes effective in Abidjan. The company increases its sales so that it becomes truly beneficial when it had successive deficits experienced during the early years. The owners of taxis, which receive compensation in the form of authorizations for transmission lines on non-urban or thumbnails to operate taxis counters.

The initial capital of SOTRA 50 million in 1960 rose to 800 million in 1974 and FCFA 3 billion F CFA in 1983. It is held in 2009 by the Ivorian government (60.13%), Irisbus / Iveco (39.80%) and the District of Abidjan (0.07%).

SOTRA has six service centers and vehicle line management, a maintenance shop waterbuses, a central workshop to renovate the bodywork and large bodies of vehicles, three control stations, four lagoon stations, forty-five bus terminals and 1,050, 265 breakpoints equipped shelters. The company operates 526 buses in standard mode, 145 express bus mode, 117 buses and 26 passenger boat bus.

The staff is divided among 223 managers, 355 senior technicians, 1,657 supervisors and 1,863 employees who work for a network of 68 urban routes, 12 express lines, 3 lines Waterbuses 2 lines Taxi luggage and online school. Average daily travels SOTRA 108,188 km (67,225 mi) and transports 800,000 passengers.