7 June 2022 12:00 am Views - 100
By Chaturanga Samarawickrama
Only 20 per cent (5,000 buses) of the total fleet of private buses were in operation in the country due to the unavailability of diesel, Lanka Private Bus Owners’ Association (LPBOA) chairman Gemunu Wijeratne said.
He further said that the buses have to be kept in long queues for days in order to be tanked up.
“Although the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) depots supply fuel for private buses, still there are shortcomings,” Wijeratne said.
“We cannot bear the price increases due to the recent tax revision.” The prices of tyres, tubes, lubricants, spare parts and other accessories have gone up drastically. The government should also cut back on unnecessary expenses, such as paying rent for government institutions in private buildings. Inflation is increasing day by day. “Printing money is not the solution to control inflation up to some extent,” he said.
However, we have decided to operate several buses to facilitate schoolchildren as the second term started yesterday.