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Video: One is enough: Gemunu
The existence of two transport Ministries had caused the degeneration of the public transport industry and therefore both ministries should be streamlined into one formal ministry, the Lanka Private Bus Owners Association (LPBOA) said today.
The existence of two ministries- the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Private Transport Services –was unnecessary, LPBOA President Gamnu Wijerathne said.
“The Association has informed the President of the situation in writing that both these ministries should be merged and a Minister of Land Transportation be appointed, especially for public transportation. If necessary, a Minister can be appointed for Railway transportation,” he said.
The Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) bus service came under the Transport Ministry while the private sector came under the purview of the Ministry of Private Transportation Services.
“The services are in a mess. If the Ministers in charge can’t provide a better service for the people, they should resign,” he said.
Wijerathne said there were 21,000 busses in service and that at least 4,000 idled.
“We use the 4,000 busses for alternative services or don’t deploy them to ensure the survival of the industry,” he said.
If the influx of additional busses in the industry was not controlled, the demise of the industry would be inevitable, Wijerathna said.
“Only those busses plying the Expressways make some profit, no one else does,” he said.
“For an industry that contributed 12 per cent to the economy 70 per cent of the necessary infrastructure was unavailable,” he said.
“We will present a proposal to the Urban Development Authority (UDA) to construct bus stands in all areas that were being developed,” he said.
A programme to launch a new office transportation service was also underway, Wijerathna said.
The office services would be available on all main routes and would charge 50 per cent more and operate only during peak hours, he said.(Video & text by Darshana Sanjeewa)
Pix by Nisal Baduge
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