Sunday Dec 15, 2024
Sunday Dec 15, 2024
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I am writing this article whilst seated on the eighth floor of a building in the heart of Colombo. If I take a moment to pause and look out the window, I can see the A1 which gives me a momentary glimpse of what Sri Lanka’s public transport has to offer. To my eye, I see two never-ending streams of buses 
flowing each way. They vary in colour, but even from a distance it appears that the majority of them form that unmistakable outline of a typical Ashok Leyland bus that one would expect to see on the streets of Colombo.
We’re often told that first impressions are everything, and the first impression that I’m getting is a form of organised chaos. Each bus appears to know what it’s doing, but there doesn’t appear to be a system. And why are there so many of them? In this article I assess the issues that seem prevalent in the public transport system of Sri Lanka and provide recommendations on how they can be improved. Any improvements require a starting point, and so the focus of my recommendations will primarily relate to Colombo.
It is important to note that while I am of Sri Lankan heritage, I was born and raised in the UK. Though I have visited Sri Lanka numerous times and have spent two months living in Colombo, my experiences on public transport are limited. Therefore, I will use the accounts of others as sources of evidence regarding the issues of each public transport service.
This article should be seen as an outsider’s perspective on the current public transport infrastructure. There may be cultural or political intricacies that I’m not entirely aware of that may prevent some of my recommendations from coming to fruition in the near future. Nonetheless, they provide food for thought and there is no reason why any of the listed suggestions can’t be implemented in the long run.
Current state of public transport in Sri Lanka
Private vehicle registration, despite taxation, is on the rise. The modal share of a society represents the number of people currently using a given mode of transport; in Sri Lanka, the public transport modal share has dropped to 50%.1 According to the Ministry of Transport & Civil Aviation’s figures, there are roughly 110,000 buses on the Road in Sri Lanka.2 It is subjective whether the three-wheeler is considered a form of public transport but there are over 1.1 million of them. The other vital component of public transport in Sri Lanka is the train.
Let’s begin by looking at the bus. According to Jayantha Rathnayake’s study, overloading, discomfort due to the lack of seats and cleanliness were identified as main problems associated with bus providers.3 Additionally, despite the climate, buses are not air conditioned, operators were said to be rude and harassing, buses were not punctual, there was no assured travel time, and the driving was considered to be unsafe. That is as damning as it gets.
Ultimately, the number one priority of any public transport service should be safety: passengers should be taken from A to B with no harm coming unto them. In 2018, ‘the number of fatal accidents involving buses jumped from 194 in 2017 to 239’.4 Up to June 2019, there have been 96 accidents, causing more than 100 deaths. The overwhelming majority of these accidents are caused by private buses. In 2016, the Chairman of National Council for Safety, Dr. Sisira Kodagoda stated one of the main reasons as being inexperienced drivers being pressured to race in order to capture ‘more passengers in order to earn more money’.5 Furthermore, many drivers use alcohol and drugs as a means of keeping themselves awake on long journeys.6 Supposedly the police are aware of this issue but lack portable test kits to check for drugs roadside.
Trains represent the next most common form of public transport in Sri Lanka. Unlike buses, trains are state operated by Sri Lanka Railways (SLR) under the Ministry of Transport. Trains come with issues of their own. In 2017, SLR made an operating loss of Rs. 7.6 billion.7 The National Intellectuals Organisation highlights how rail services provided by SLR come ‘at the cost of a heavy subsidy burden on the Government Treasury and hence people’.8
Trains are often overcrowded and continue to carry a relatively small fraction of commuters. Furthermore, the rail network’s signalling and telecommunication systems are considered ‘outdated’.9 A lack of investment, lack of technology and trade union strikes have all been attributed to the issues of over-crowding, poor reliability, and inability of the system to function smoothly.10 While safety is less of a problem than in relation to buses, due to overcrowding it is a common sight to see passengers balancing precariously on footboards. With regard to scheduling, unlike buses, one can find these online, but it is not yet possible to book online.11
As of August 2019, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed on a $160m loan to fund a $ 192 million ‘Railway Efficiency Improvement Project’.12 The project aims to improve ‘the operation, maintenance, safety, skills development, and implementation capacity of SLR’.13 Additionally, and perhaps more exciting, is the Colombo Light Rail Project that is in its infancy. The $2.2bn project has been struck at an interest rate of 0.1%, with a repayment period of 40 years, including a 12-year grace period.14 This deal represents a major coup for Sri Lanka. Completion is expected to be in 2025, and in six years’ time when I return to visit Sri Lanka, I hope to see the Light Rail hurtling overhead.
Additionally, the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact, the American aid programme, has approved a $ 480 million grant to try and aid the improvement of transport infrastructure and land reconstruction.15 If it goes ahead, the majority of the funds will be dedicated towards an active traffic management system, a 24-hour system traffic monitoring and controlling system, investment in modernising bus services and upgrading 131 km worth of inter-provincial road network in Uva, Sabaragamuwa, and Central Provinces.
Traffic congestion
Traffic congestion has an impact on bus services. Between 2012 and 2017, the number of cars alone rose by 51% from 499,714 to 756,856 (three-wheelers: 67%, motorcycles: 63%).16 According to Megapolis and Western Development Minister, Patali Champika Ranawaka, in order to accommodate the increased number of vehicles these total number of roads would have to be increased three-fold by 2030. This is obviously not possible. Congestion has got so bad that the average speed on city roads in the metropolitan area of Colombo has decreased to 10 km/h.17 Losses incurred by congestion include (a) economic loss of productive time, (b) financial loss via excess fuel consumption, (c) environmental loss via carbon emission, (d) added cost of health hazard, and (e) additional cost of payments of “unproductive” work during traffic congestion.18 It is estimated that annually a loss of Rs. 600-700bn is incurred due to traffic congestion nationwide.19
Unfortunately, the disutility of existing public transport services means we are likely to see an increasing shift towards private vehicle usage. High income elasticity and the perception of the car as being a status symbol contribute further. This class-oriented mindset leads to ‘people who don’t have a car often looked down upon by others’.20 Putting aside the social consequences, it simply causes congested city streets. Uber and PickMe, introduced in Sri Lanka in 2015, further encourage road use. They provide employment opportunities, particularly for those living outside of Colombo, for whom being a tuk-tuk driver in the capital is more lucrative.21 This influx of drivers/vehicles only compounds traffic congestion in the capital. According to Gilan Pilapitiya, General Manager of United Motors Group, ‘often traffic builds on a junction due to motorists being selfish and arrogant’.22 For example, three-wheelers encroaching onto the wrong side of the road and jamming into every pocket of space cannot aid the flow of traffic, particularly on the oncoming side. Unfortunately, these attitudes to driving are hampering the effective use of the Bus Priority Lanes (BPL) too. One reason given is ‘the lack of concern for road rules for which Sri Lankan motorists are renowned, including using the BPL as their own high-speed lane’.23 This lack of discipline also causes unnecessary expenditure on traffic officers.
Sri Lanka is at the stage where traffic management must now be a ‘collective responsibility, including that of the relevant policymakers, the police, pedestrians and the motorists as a whole,’ says Gilan Pilapitiya.24 It appears as though the government has started making preliminary steps with the introduction of lane laws from 10 June 2019.25 Two months in and they appear to be scarcely followed or enforced, with drivers never seeming to be stopped or punished for breaching them. Nonetheless, it is a positive initiative in its early stages so let’s see how it progresses. 
Ultimately, the end goal should be that public transport infrastructure is such that it is the preferred form of transport for the masses having accounted for costs, comfort and safety. Irrespective of wealth, it should be sufficiently efficient to be preferable to private vehicles.
Propositions
The following propositions look to find solutions to the public transport issues discussed. They are structured as following: a) a structural change to the governance/regulation of public transport, b) directly improving public transport services, c) tackling congestion, and d) innovation.
Creating a noticeable change to the current situation will require a combination of infrastructure investment, policy changes, creative thinking, and bravery on the part of politicians. However, these economic/political changes need to be coupled with changes in cultural values, behavioural traits and education. Throughout, I will draw upon transport systems of other nations to seek inspiration regarding the improvement of Sri Lanka’s public transport.
Structural change
While rail services are nationalised, only a small section of bus services are. The absence of an integrated transport policy led to the independent development of transport modes, resulting in a fragmented transport sector with disintegrated services.26 For example, buses do not provide dedicated feeder services to trains. According to the World Bank, ‘streamlining schedules, stops, fares, and passenger information among subways, buses and commuter rail, will make it easier for passengers, cut down on operational costs and boost operational revenue’.27
Thus, my first proposal is the restructuring of the Ministry of Transport in such a way that all public transport services are under the jurisdiction of the ministry. Money needs to be invested in integrating services, but also regulating services. A regulatory body under the command of the Ministry of Transport needs to be set up, with different divisions relating to each different mode of public transport. This group should be provided with the necessary finances to be able to monitor and assess scheduling, service routes, health and safety measures, cleanliness, and all other manner of performance-related criteria regularly. It should also have sufficient authority to enforce standards with pre-determined, legislative sanctions and penalties for those that violate required regulations.
Improving public transport services
Buses
My first proposition involves the reintroduction of double-decker buses. Despite being prominent in the 1950s and 1960s, they were phased out by the 1970s. A buses’ physical footprint is comparable whether it has a single deck or if it’s a double-decker, the latter merely holds more people. Fewer buses would be required on the road, consequently taking up less road space per passenger, reducing atmospheric pollution, and facilitating easier management and control of scheduling. The additional space reduces the present need for people to stand on the footboards too.
Issues such as include low-hanging cables, low-lying bridges, increased loading and unloading times, higher maintenance costs, increased capital costs, greater headroom in depots and increased training required need to be considered.28 In Mumbai the remaining double-deckers are being phased out by 2023. The reason given was that they ‘require twice the time for maintenance than normal BEST buses’ as well as the extra manpower required to operate them and the fact that running the bulky buses on congested roads had become infeasible.29
Bus scheduling also needs to improve. Schedules should be presented by the Ministry of Transport to operators having studied the volume of traffic on different routes. Additionally, bus stops should have electronic boards updating passengers of the next bus and its ETA. In the long-term, Sri Lanka should strive for an electric fleet as it would reduce fuel imports as well as reducing greenhouse gases, whose effects are made worse by the congestion issue.
Finally, the existing Bus Priority Lanes (BPL) can be better utilised; they have somewhat been a failure. This is due to the disutility generated from existing bus services as well as private vehicle users encroaching into the bus lanes. It is unclear whether the monitoring centre was intended to keep cars out of the BPL or keep buses in it, but it needs to exist for the former. Drivers should be fined and administered a ‘demerit’ on their license for entering the BPL (discussed later). If BPLs are properly enforced, the use of a bus should be the most efficient mode of transport on the road. Where it is possible to expand the scheme (3-lane roads) it should be, but only if they are enforced properly.
Trains
A faster, more efficient, more frequent, yet affordable train service would also drastically reduce the number of people resorting to commuting via the road. I will start by suggesting investing in electric trains. Despite the Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka (IESL) pressing for the electrification of train lines for over 20 years, starting with the Colombo-Ragama section, an electrified train system still does not exist.30 While tracks would need to be fenced off, and transmission towers and electric wiring installed, the trains can remain on the existing tracks.31 Thailand’s proposed new electricity-powered route covering 355km is estimated to cost 60bn baht (Rs. 343 billion).32 This is representative of the costs that may be involved in a hypothetical new electric route from Jaffna to Batticaloa, for example.
In sum, more trains are required so that they can be scheduled more frequently. Train schedules need to be made more transparent with electronic boards on platforms, and tannoy systems within trains that notify passengers of upcoming stops and where trains terminate. Currently, passengers can book 30 days in advance.33 This can be done by visiting a train station or calling 444 via Dialog.34 There should be the ability to book online and prior to 30 days before travel too. Tourists often book their trips months in advance; facilitating this helps improve cash flow for an already loss-making organisation.35
I also propose the introduction of double-decker trains, also known as bi-level rail cars. According to Graham Currie, the chairman of Public Transport at Monash University in Melbourne, ‘double-decker trains could carry between 20% to 30% more people than single-decker trains’.36 The reason they don’t carry twice the number of people is due to passengers bunching up near the doors. They cost more to build and are slower to run. However, they are a solution to addressing overcrowding, and ease issues of scheduling.
Finally, I propose a change in prices. The cost of travelling from Colombo Fort to Mount Lavinia is Rs. 20. This is simply too low; even a snack at any canteen in Colombo costs more. According to Amal Kumarage, the cost of transporting a passenger on an SLR train costs Rs. 2 per km. However, for that km the consumer only pays Rs. 1. Is it an unreasonable increase to charge train users Rs. 40 for that same Fort to Mount Lavinia journey? Similar increases in price can apply to buses too. Obviously increasing the cost of public transport is an unpopular decision that politicians would shy away from but something that must be considered. Note, any increased fares should be accompanied with an improvement in the quality of the service.
Better facilities for the disabled and the elderly
Let’s briefly assess services provided to the disabled and elderly. In 2012, 8.6% of the population suffered from some form of disability.37 Further, as of October 2018, 9.67% of the population is above 65 years, and with the fastest ageing population in South Asia, it is projected that one in four is expected to be an ‘elderly person’ by 2041.38 Despite laws being in place, ‘little has been done to make public buildings and transportation accessible to people with disabilities’.39 Economically speaking this reduces productivity, and given the changing dynamic of the population, the Ministry of Transport needs to start looking ahead.
During the construction of new infrastructure such as the LRT, it is imperative that elevators for wheelchair users, tannoy systems for the blind and electronic boards for the deaf are incorporated. The latter two benefit everyone and represent a relatively minor reform (in terms of cost and technology). These provisions should be made available on other forms of public transport in the long run too. Additionally, if a new bus fleet is invested in, they should be sufficiently low enough that drivers can place down ramps against the door for wheelchair users to enter.
Utilising Colombo’s network of canals
Moving away from land, Colombo also has a canal network that is 43km long, extending from the mountain ranges to the sea.40 Despite having such a resource, it has largely been left unexploited. As of 22 August 2019, there are plans for two boat services to operate along Beira Lake, connecting Colombo Fort to Union Place.41 The journey is believed to be 15 minutes long; 30-seater as well as 50-seater boats are set to operate along the route between 07:00-10:00 and 16:00-21:00.
Sri Lanka can use Bangkok’s existing commuter ferry service along the Chao Phraya River as inspiration. The Chao Phraya Express Boat operates between a distance of 21 km, comprising a fleet of 65 boats (of which 15 are ‘super-size boats’), with an average capacity of 200 people.42 During peak times (e.g. 07:00-08:00) there boats are as often as 5 minutes.43 In total, the Chao Phraya Express Boat accommodates ‘approximately 35,000 to 40,000 passengers each day or 13.5 million passengers per year’.
So why couldn’t Sri Lanka adopt a similar approach? My first route suggestion is along the Kelani Ganga: it would begin in Ambathale, meet the sea by Crow Island Beach near Modara, and proceed to the Fort area. The total distance of the journey is very loosely estimated to be 20km. Based on the time it takes the Chao Phraya Express Boat to complete its 20km, the number of stops and the extent to which each river meanders, I predict the journey could take one hour from start to finish. During peak times, if there were boats as often as 5 minutes and the boats were half the size of those operated by Chao Phraya Express Boat, this would represent 1200 passengers being transported within an hour. This would now start to make a small dent in the congestion issue in Colombo.
The second suggestion involves linking Battaramulla to Colombo. The route starts at Diyawanna Lake, travels through the Kolonnawa Canal, then the Kirulapone Canal which flows out to sea by Wellawatte Beach and terminates at the Fort area. Again, I very loosely estimate the distance to be around 15km, thus I estimate the time taken to be 45 minutes. The feasibility of a ferry service through this route is far more questionable as these waterways are less wide; depth would also need to be assessed.
The final route suggestion is a coastal ferry service to compliment the coastal train: from Moratuwa towards the Fort. This is also estimated to be a 20 km journey. To warrant taking a ferry service as opposed to the train or bus, I suggest that there are no stops along this route. The Manly Ferry in Sydney, Australia is a perfect example of such a point-to-point ferry service used to transport commuters en masse. Currently, the journey from Moratuwa Railway Station to Fort Station takes around 40 minutes by train.44 Therefore, if we use 40 minutes as the target, the ferry would have to average 30 km/h (16.2 knots); this includes the time taken to accelerate and decelerate at either end.
There are a multitude of issues involved in beginning a commuter ferry service. It is extremely difficult to estimate the cost of running a ferry; the type of boat impacts the capital cost, its fuel usage, the number of crew required, servicing costs etc. However, Chao Phraya Express Boat has been operating for around 100 years, and it is independently run.45 Evidently the ferry service has been profitable and coupled with the number of passengers it serves one can confidently say it has been a resounding success. Even if a potential ferry service is loss-making, it can be funded by the revenues from the Congestion Charge (discussed later). The current loss of productive welfare will also be reduced and may represent enough value to warrant running it despite operating losses.
Other points of consideration include whether the port has sufficient infrastructure to support an influx of commuter ferries. Additionally, jetties and piers would need to be constructed. The tide would need to be considered with regard to its impact on water levels. Maritime laws in relation to shipping lanes need to be accounted for. With the routes in-land, low-lying bridges provide a limit to the size of boats. Environmental concerns need to be assessed: the effect on the water of operating fossil fuel powered boats, the impact on the wildlife, and the greenhouse gases released. Finally, health and safety laws need to be administered regarding speed limits, life jackets, passenger limits and the number of boat providers (if services are privatised).
Tackling congestion
Taxes
Congestion directly impacts the services of buses. In any populated capital city, the car is the most inefficient mode of transport, particularly during rush hour. Policymakers have the power to find a means by which to disincentivise their use. Import duty on cars is already extremely high, and one option is to increase these further. For example, the increase in vehicle taxes seen in March 2019 led to a 65 – 70% decrease in vehicle imports.46 However, this merely prevents the current stock of motor vehicles in Sri Lanka from increasing.
Instead, let’s see how to disincentivise the use of the existing stock of cars. An analysis by the Business Times found that between 2000 and 2017, ‘tax on petrol and diesel has averaged 40% of the retail price of both fuels’.47 The Government could tax fuel further. Given the inelastic nature of fuel, a major hike may be required to see a sufficient reduction in the use of vehicles. This is an extreme suggestion as it affects everyone nationwide, including public transport services. Another approach would be taxing ride-hailing services such as Uber and PickMe. A study assessing the price elasticity of demand of Uber and PickMe in Sri Lanka would be necessary to assess the full impact.
Introducing a congestion charge scheme
My ideal solution however is the introduction of a Congestion Charge scheme. It deters individuals from driving their car into the centre of the city, whilst providing a source of income to the Government.
London’s Congestion Charge is one that Sri Lanka could draw inspiration from. Today, a £11.50 [Rs. 2475] daily charge is applicable for driving a vehicle within the 13-mile square charging zone between 07:00 and 18:00, Monday to Friday.48 There were 688 cameras across the city upon its introduction, providing signals to Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) software that records each number plate.49, 50 Buses, taxis, ‘Blue Badge’ holders (the disabled), motorbikes, residents, and environmentally friendly vehicles are given a discount or exemption.51 If the charge isn’t paid by ‘the charging day after you drove in the zone, you get a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN)’.52 As of August 2019, the penalty charge is £160, but this is reduced to £80 if paid within 14 days. By law, the revenues from the Congestion Charge must be spent on improving the transport network across London.53
London’s Congestion Charge has largely been deemed a success. In its third year (2005-06), the scheme generated £120 million in revenue (Rs. 26.3 billion).54 Congestion had reduced by 26% during the hours when the charge was active and nitrous oxides (NOX) and particulate matters (PM10) reduced by 13% and 15% respectively. During the 2018-19 financial year, revenues were £229.9 million (Rs. 50.5 billion), with a net income totalled £146.7 million (Rs. 32.2 billion).55
A similar initiative should be introduced for Colombo: drivers of private vehicles should be required to pay a pre-determined sum to enter a designated area of the city. Exemptions should be made for residents, the disabled and buses etc. Whether three-wheelers constitute ‘public transport’ and should also be given an exemption, or discount, is subjective. CCTV cameras with ANPR technology will need to be installed in the designated area to monitor the zone and to use to sanction offenders. A payment method system will also need to be provided. A website or mobile app where commuters can pay for a given day, or an auto-pay system connected to the individual’s card will need to be facilitated. Non-compliers should be directed a penalty charge, but crucially it should be mandated that the revenue from the scheme is reinvested into Colombo’s public transport. This could help fund the ferry service or ease the pressure placed on the budget from the operating losses of SLR’s rail services.
Unfortunately, any measure that deters individuals from using private vehicles lends itself to questions of equity, as a certain portion of the public become priced out while the wealthy are still able to take the hit of the additional cost. These social issues are important. Furthermore, any measure that disincentivises private vehicles is pointless unless coupled with improved public transport provisions. Existing public transport services are simply too inefficient to cater for a sudden increase in users when hopefully private vehicle users make the shift.
Changing people’s behaviour on the road
Another way to address congestion is changing people’s driving attitudes. It is important to note that the correlation between the violation of traffic laws and congestion isn’t necessarily causal. Changing attitudes towards traffic laws will not happen overnight. To begin tackling this issue, we need to start by educating drivers on the laws, teaching them the benefits of adhering to them, but most importantly enforcing them rigorously.
Those who disobey road laws should be fined a sufficient amount that it acts as a disincentive to offending in the future. If the fine is too low the wealthy have little incentive to adhere to the laws; too high and it becomes unfair on the poor. Perhaps a means-tested penalty system like the UK’s where a percentage of weekly income is taken would disincentivise everyone in an equitable manner.56
Imitating the UK’s model further, a points-based driving licence (‘demerit’ system) should be introduced, where offenders collect points for each traffic offence, and upon surpassing a points threshold they are disqualified from driving.57 Those who drive whilst disqualified should be hit with heavy fines, and possible incarceration. This would act as a deterrent to individuals disobeying traffic laws and should drastically affect the patterns of behaviour, we see on the road today.
To enforce these laws, there needs to be an investment in a greater roadside police presence to punish offenders. To prevent corrupt police officers taking bribes, officers should receive a percentage of the fine of each offender they catch as commission coupled with a permanently rolling bodycam that captures the road offence and can be presented as evidence in potential disputes.
More practically, CCTV would identify the number plate of offenders and fines are sent through the post. This requires establishing a monitoring centre, similar to that of the Congestion Charge. In the short-term these suggestions may be a burden on the government budget. However, penalties represent another form of income to the government, which can in part fund the monitoring centre. Moreover, as drivers begin self-regulating, the numerous traffic officers currently being wasted as human traffic lights can be better utilised elsewhere.
Innovation
A single payment method
Technology provides a means by which we can streamline services. One example would be through the use of a single payment method across transport modes. A suitable example is Singapore’s EZ-link card which can be used on the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT, metro), the Light Rail Transit (LRT) and buses.58 It can be topped up in multiple ways including at self-service ticketing machines, its own app, manned counters, convenience stores and some ATMs.59
A similar technology should be incorporated alongside the upcoming LRT in Colombo and made compatible with other forms of transport too. Self-service machines should be set up at LRT stations and large bus terminals. It should also be possible to top up the card at stores such as LAUGFS, Cargills, Arpico, etc. Given that 33.4% of houses in the Western Province have a computer or laptop, and smartphone use is rapidly on the rise, an app should be created to facilitate fast, on-the-go top-ups of the pass.60 Individuals should merely be able to tap their card at a card reader upon entering and exiting the mode of public transport.
Investing in solar
Picturing an ideal Sri Lanka, trains and buses would be electric, and there would be a transition from fossil fuel powered cars to electric cars and tuks. Such changes would drastically alter the demand for electricity in Sri Lanka. A transition to electricity is inconsequential if the sources of that electricity are predominantly fossil fuels. Currently, coal and oil represent 62.56% of energy generated, while wind and hydro represent 35.82%.61 Given its climate, Sri Lanka is a country for whom solar power should be a primary source of energy.
As of 2016, the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) implemented the ‘Soorya Bala Sangramaya’ programme aimed at installing solar panels on roof tops of one million households.62 Producers are paid Rs. 22 per unit for the first seven years, and Rs. 15.50 for the next 13 years. However, only 17,000 PV solar systems have been installed so far, and in June 2019, the CEB and Ministry of Power and Energy (MPE) ‘decided not to approve rooftop PV connections over 50 kW capacities until further notice’.
Continuing the Soorya Bala Sangramaya programme would display a positive step and should help to improve the supply of electricity to facilitate any extra demand. On a positive note, as of August 2019, train stations on the northern line are to be powered by solar energy: solar panels are being installed on the roofs by Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB).63
Conclusion
In this article I have briefly discussed the existing transport infrastructure, the issues with it, and made suggestions on how it can be improved. Many of the suggestions I’ve made are costly investments. Aside from loans, the major source of funding that I have used to justify them is via the Congestion Charge. A crucial factor in the consideration of all these suggestions is the loss of welfare via the loss of productivity suffered by the citizens of Colombo as a result of being caught in traffic congestion.
Alongside my limited experience on Sri Lanka’s public transport, a lack of time, funding and technical expertise prevents me from conducting a proper research study into the feasibility of these proposals. Ideally, I would like to have attached some numbers to my proposals. I also lack the resources to know details of the budget and its distribution, or how attainable other sources of funding are. Ultimately, experts in the field of research with better access to data and information are required to conduct feasibility studies to determine if any of the suggestions are of benefit. Obviously, the proposals I presented cannot occur all at once.
Sadly, the nature of politics impacts Sri Lanka advancing. Creating a drastic change in public transport services is a long-term process. Too often various projects are discussed, yet nothing comes to fruition. Further, the public are not aware of the economic consequence of an issue such as congestion, i.e. the extent of the loss of productivity.
There has been no effort on the part of Sri Lankan governments to educate the public on these economic consequences or to explain how making sacrifices today may be beneficial in the future for all. Instead, numerous Sri Lankan governments have appeased the public’s desire for instant gratification through short-sighted policy decisions.
Even if it is economically necessary, Sri Lankan governments have been afraid of the political backlash from unpopular policies such as increasing the cost of travel on public transport or introducing a Congestion Charge scheme. As I said, improving public transport services requires bravery on the part of politicians. This begins by educating the public about the cold, hard truths of the current situation in Colombo. Thus, it remains to be seen whether future governments will continue to serve themselves and their party, or actually look to serve the people.
Ultimately, my path is going to lead me back to the UK – I am not the one who is going to be affected on a daily basis by Sri Lanka’s poor public transport. Yet, I hope this article demonstrates my desire for Sri Lanka to develop as a nation and for it to catch up with various developed nations in terms of its transport infrastructure.
While many of my proposals are costly, and some may even consider them to be outlandish, they are not impossible. It just requires a strong enough desire to want change to occur. From my perspective anyway, if even a few sentences are taken from this article to benefit the people of Sri Lanka it has been worth my time.
[The writer was born in the UK to Sri Lankan parents. He is a BSc Economics and Management graduate from the University of Bristol, and is about to commence an MSc in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Warwick. His views are independent and do not reflect either organisation. He can be reached at [email protected]]
References
http://www.ft.lk/opinion/Transport-dilemma--What-is-the-way-out-/14-672377
2 http://www.transport.gov.lk/web/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=26&Itemid=146&lang=en#vehicle-population
3 http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=78350
4 http://www.sundaytimes.lk/190811/news/reckless-drivers-at-wheel-drive-buses-to-death-362447.html
5 http://www.sundaytimes.lk/161106/news/duelling-buses-cause-a-death-every-day-216116.html
6 http://www.sundaytimes.lk/190811/news/reckless-drivers-at-wheel-drive-buses-to-death-362447.html
7 https://economynext.com/Sri_Lanka_railways_loses_Rs7.5bn_in_2017,_exceeds_revenues-3-10686-.html
8 http://www.ft.lk/opinion/Transport-dilemma--What-is-the-way-out-/14-672377
9 http://www.ft.lk/front-page/ADB-approves-160-m-in-first-loan-to-railway-sector/44-684040
10 http://www.railway.gov.lk/web/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=138&Itemid=176&lang=en
11 https://eservices.railway.gov.lk/schedule/searchTrain.action?lang=en
12 http://www.ft.lk/opinion/Transport-dilemma--What-is-the-way-out-/14-672377
13 https://www.adb.org/projects/49111-005/main
14 http://www.ft.lk/top-story/Govt-flags-off-2-2-b-Light-Railway-Transit-project/26-681279
15 http://www.ft.lk/front-page/US-hopes-SL-will-eventually-approve-480-m-grant-inclusive-MCC-Compact/44-684867
16 http://www.sundaytimes.lk/190224/business-times/colombos-traffic-nightmare-337578.html
17 https://lmd.lk/public-transport/
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