HAVANA (AP) 鈥� On a recent sweltering afternoon in the Cuban capital, dozens of commuters on bicycles, scooters and electric motorcycles gathered in a tidy row at the entrance of the Bay Tunnel. They were waiting for the Ciclob煤s, a bus specially fitted to take people 鈥� and their rides 鈥� through the underwater tunnel linking Old Havana to the eastern side of the island.
The diesel-powered bus can accommodate around 60 travelers and their vehicles, making enough trips to transport more than 2,000 people per day. It features a front seating section, but half its metallic frame is an open bay for cargo. Riders enter via a specialized ramp and stay with their vehicles for the duration of the trip, holding onto wall-mounted grab bars for balance. Bicycles, motorcycles and scooters are not allowed in the tunnel.
While the Ciclob煤s is not new, it has never been as popular 鈥� and essential 鈥� as Cuba navigates its most severe energy crisis in decades.
The imposed by in January has forced the country to ration gasoline to only 20 liters (5 gallons) per vehicle through a cumbersome appointment process that can take weeks, or even months, . These days, the streets of Havana are almost empty of cars but teeming with thousands of bicycles and small electric motorcycles that have become the only way to get around.
鈥淢y husband owns a bicycle, so I’m riding as his companion,鈥� said Ingrid Quintana, a resident of East Havana, who works in the old part of Havana, while waiting for the tunnel bus. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an option we have, because there鈥檚 no public transportation and we can鈥檛 afford to pay for a private taxi, so we ride the Ciclob煤s.”
The Ciclob煤s is the shortest public transportation route on the island, covering 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) in about 15 minutes.
After boarding near the Havana Bay Tunnel in Old Havana, passengers endure a rattling journey through the darkness of the underwater passage. They emerge in eastern Havana, a sprawling residential zone where hundreds of thousands reside. By contrast, the alternative land route must skirt the massive bay, a 16-kilometer (10-mile) trek through sparsely populated and poorly paved industrial port areas.
The fare for boarding ranges from 2 to 5 Cuban pesos (a tiny fraction of a U.S. dollar on the informal market) depending on whether you are transporting a bicycle or a motorcycle.
In comparison, a ride in a shared taxi from the eastern neighborhoods 鈥� passing through the tunnel 鈥� costs 1,000 Cuban pesos (about $2). A Cuban worker can earn (about $14).
Owned by Havana鈥檚 state-run transport company, the Ciclob煤s emerged in the 1990s during the so-called 鈥淪pecial Period,鈥� the crisis triggered by the collapse of the Soviet Union that left the island isolated, prompting then-President to distribute Chinese-made bicycles among the population.
Over time, the service lost some of its appeal as residents turned to regular buses or shared taxis. But it is now seeing a resurgence as force more Cubans to rely on bicycles, electric tricycles, scooters and motorcycles for their daily commutes.
鈥淢ost jobs are on the other side, in the city, and that鈥檚 why we have to ride it to get across,鈥� said 32-year-old gym teacher B谩rbaro Cabral, gripping his bicycle tightly as the Ciclob煤s began to fill with passengers.
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