How Do People Get Around in Haiti?

By Cecily Bacon, Intern

Travelling from Point A to Point B in any country can be quite the adventure, but it becomes particularly adventuresome when that commuting involves public transportation. For most Haitians, owning a car can be quite expensive, so many rely on walking, biking or public transportation.

While we would often think of public transportation as being trains, subways, taxis or buses, this is not quite the case in Haiti. Public transportation in Haiti is synonymous with the “tap-tap”, which is a more festive means of commuting. Tap-taps can take the form of former school buses, vans, or pickup-trucks. They are vibrant, brightly-colored vehicles with various designs, images and slogans painted across their exterior, and to an onlooker can be quite the festive work of art passing you along the road. Mirroring the vast amount of decoration on the outside, the inside of a tap-tap is quite often overflowing with people. Drivers attempt to accommodate as many passengers as possible, which means managing to find space where there is none. For example, they could continue acquiring passengers until a 20-person bus is instead crammed with 40 passengers.

Drivers of pick-up trucks will often install benches for more seating and sometimes put a canopy cover over the top. Even a motorcycle can serve as a tap-tap, with the driver piling on as many people as possible. While the cost of riding a tap-tap through the city is typically less than $1.00 (US), the cost can increase for those traveling longer distances or between cities. Regardless of where the final destination might be, once a tap-tap is on its route, the driver will continue dropping off and picking up others along the way.

While Haitians will commute by walking, using bikes, or for some their personal cars, the tap-tap is certainly an exciting and uniquely Haitian means of transportation.