WHERE NO TEXT TRIGGERS DEBT

Dec 6 , 2025.

Addis Ababa’s notoriously snarled traffic has become the testing ground for a new digital ticketing system that promised convenience yet has instead trapped thousands of motorists in an expensive limbo. The Addis Abeba Traffic Management Authority (AATMA), buoyed by nearly 800 million Br in fines last year, abandoned handwritten citations in favour of officers snapping a photo of a driving licence and sending an SMS with payment details. Drivers were told they have 10 days to settle penalties through mobile money before interest piled on. But the promise faltered almost immediately when SMS alerts failed to arrive. With no paper slip in hand, many motorists assumed they had escaped penalties, until a terse public notice urged them to “check your licence status”.

Branch offices were soon overwhelmed as motorists learned their modest fines had quietly swollen by daily interest of 25 Br on smaller tickets and 50 Br on those of 1,000 Br. More than 35,000 drivers are believed to have been caught out, with stories of penalties multiplying six-fold or more. One motorist fined 500 Br discovered an arrear of 2,400 Br; another found a 1,500 Br speeding ticket had ballooned to 6,450 Br; a third saw an unnoticed 1,000 Br offence rise to 4,750 Br. Even the officials enforcing the scheme acknowledge that messages often vanish in patchy telecom networks, or bounce when drivers’ numbers are incorrect or short-code blocking is active.

At Authority headquarters, the technology lead insisted the cloud-based platform is “fully operational” and now holds data on 1.4 million drivers. Between January and November this year, 172,743 penalties were logged, yet more than 40,000 remain unpaid, many, the official admitted, because drivers never received the promised text. Officers have been instructed to provide payment codes on the spot to avert future misunderstandings. Critics argue the system’s teething troubles are made worse by scant public awareness and sketchy mobile coverage. Transport experts say that digital reforms elsewhere, such as in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa, among them, succeeded only when gradual roll-outs were paired with intensive education for officers and drivers.

In Addis Abeba, habits forged under the paper-based regime have proved hard to rewrite, with many drivers relying on informal word-of-mouth rather than official channels. For the city, though, revenue remains the lodestar. Automated fines linked to vehicle and licence renewals are expected to eclipse last year’s haul. However, without reliable messaging and clearer guidance, experts warn, the changes to the norm risk breeding more resentment than compliance, as drivers struggle with debts that grow invisibly in the ether long after the traffic jam has cleared.

PUBLISHED ON Dec 06,2025 [ VOL 26 , NO 1336]