Private buses in WP should be painted blue after April 1
Western Province Road Passenger Transport Authority said yesterday new laws would be introduced from April 1 to make it compulsory to paint private buses in blue.
They would be provided a grace period of two months from April 1 to remove additional items such as stickers, paintings, sound systems and extra horns.
Road Passenger Transport Authority Chairman Thusitha Kularatne said private buses could be easily identified if they had a distinct colour. He said blue was chosen as it was pleasing to the eyes and would reduce road accidents to some extent.
“Multi-coloured private buses with colourful stickers have resulted in several accidents, as the bus drivers in other buses get drawn to these distractions,” Mr. Kularatne said. and added that laws would be introduced to remove all the additional itemss other than those approved by the Department of Motor Traffic.
He said it was essential to have a suitable environment for passengers to travel in private buses in the Western Province and added that seats should be provided for pregnant women, clergy and disabled persons.
About 6,000 private buses operate on 475 bus routes in the Western Province alone.
At the end of the grace period, legal action would be taken against those violating the new laws. It may result in cancelling or suspending the route permits.
(Source: Daily Mirror – By Chaturanga Samarawickrama)
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Is the blue painting of buses being paid for by the Provincial Council?
This is terrible because soon, the son of RP will require all buses in the south to be painted green with his dad’s photo at the back!
Ah! Another clever idea to solve the transport problem in Sri Lanka.
Make the inside comfortable and commodious, no any safety situation inside the bus. Iron bars not covers by rubber cover …seats are not comfortable..height is the foot board uneasy to get in Pregnant women , childs and 60-65 +elders
Blue colour is pleasing to the eye. Some private buses are painted in red, looks like CTB. Passengers get deceived. People prefer CTB since CTB does not crawl on the road. Another major issue is Ashok Leyland bus seat today is made smaller, narrower, two people cannot sit. Men take the opportunity and lean on the lady sitting next to him. All lady passengers in the bus go through this harassment everyday. It’s a pathetic sight. Ladies are helpless. They just look through the window and wonder who decided to reduce the width of the bus seat, while the man is leaning on her on purpose. Many men take advantage. There are men who sit next to a lady on purpose, to lean on her. Nothing she can do, except get up and stand. Small bus seat has become a major inconvenience to the lady passengers. Many busses have a long seat meant for three. Three people cannot sit on that. Here again, when a lady sits in the middle, two men will sit on either side and press the lady. I see this every day. I am a regular bus traveller. Ladies undergo severe harassment in busses today, as against ten years ago. This small seat has given ample opportunity to men to harass ladies. Mr. Thusitha Kularathne, please save the lady passenger from perverts in busses by introducing broader bus seats based on international standards.
Please please please, Mr. Thusitha Kularathne, introduce Ladies Only Busses in all major routes, during rush hours, morning and evening. This is a must. Ladies cannot travel in peace in public transport today. Too many male passengers are corrupt. There are parents who do not want to send their daughters to work because of the transport issue. A girl cannot travel in a bus peacefully today. The men do all they can to harras the lady in the bus. UNFPA has carried out many surveys on harassment of ladies in busses in Sri Lanka, It’s on internet. Bus (and crowded train) are the easiest places for a man to harras a lady.