Private buses may not operate after O/L exam – Gemunu

by Pradeep Prasanna Samarakoon

Chairman of the Lanka Private Bus Owners’ Association Gemunu Wijeratne said that instructions had been issued to the members of his association to operate as many buses as possible for the benefit of the GCE Ordinary Level students and teachers on examination duty.

“We are facing a serious situation because nearly half of the buses are waiting in diesel queues. There are around 20,000 private buses in the country and of them only around 8,000 are operating at the moment. The association has instructed its members to operate their buses before and after the examination so that children could travel to examination centres and return home,” Wijeratne told The Island yesterday.

He said that the number of commuters had decreased drastically following the bus fare hike. “Usually, when the number of buses is low, the number of passengers increases. But, in the current situation we notice a decrease in the number of passengers. We are in a tight situation. With the price increases we are compelled to increase the bus fare. We know that this fare is unbearable to many people. Yet we are also helpless in this situation. We have to cover the costs of maintaining the service. There is a warning that fuel prices will increase shortly again,” he said.

Wijeratne said some pump attendants were taking bribes from private buses to supply fuel in full view of the police and military personnel. Most of these attendants obtain as much as Rs. 1,000 per tankful.

Wijeratne said that if 500 vehicles were issued fuel per day, they would be able to earn Rs. 500,000 each per day. “If the government fails to implement a proper mechanism to issue fuel for private buses, bus operations will have to be discontinued immediately after the O/L exam,” he said.