Commuting blues

The last few weeks have seen an increase in complaints from the public surrounding price surges in ride-hailing apps. While this itself is a topic worth diving into in detail at some point, the reasons behind it seem to be worth discussing at this juncture.

The most obvious conclusion is that this is a reaction to rising fuel costs, combined with an increase in demand and reduction in supply – again, possibly a result of the rapidly increasing cost of fuel.

To compound matters, private bus owners have also requested and subsequently been acquiesced an increase in bus fares.

Those invariably taking the brunt of these increasing costs though are the end consumer. In terms of solutions though, a more accessible public transport system seems to be at the top of the wish list, though this has long been something Sri Lankans have craved but with little by way of effective Government initiative.

Last month it was announced that the Government was looking to digitalise its public transport offering in 2022. Many though, would rightly take such proclamations with a grain of salt; regulating buses in Sri Lanka is a knotty issue because it is a subject devolved to the provinces, and the complex route permit system has meant that introducing technology, putting buses on a timetable and reducing pollution are incredibly difficult. This is also why the app-driven tuk-tuk market has taken off while public transport is stuck in the dark ages.

Among the most significant measures discussed in recent times has been proposal to combine both the State and private bus services into one time table. This step has been recommended multiple times, including by the National Transport Commission (NTC), but failed in its implementation as public transport is a subject residing with Provincial Councils and cannot be implemented by the Transport Ministry.

It remains to be seen if this Government, or indeed this President, can find a way to overcome this hurdle. One obvious solution would be to restructure the Ministry of Transport in such a way that all public transport services are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry. This would enable an improvement in bus scheduling, while also allowing for the implementation of electronic boards keeping passengers updated on bus timings and its ETA.

The Bus Priority Lanes (BPLs) must also be enforced strictly, both to keep buses within those lanes and private vehicles out of them.

A continued failure to look into the matter of public transport will only bring about more woe for the public, in ways that hit both their wallets and psyches. Indeed, one thing the pandemic has shone a light on is how much time is wasted commuting to work and back.

A lack of adequate public transport has led to many utilising ride-hailing apps or indeed purchasing their own vehicles. This is in turn has clogged up the roads even further, leading to ever increasing traffic congestion in Colombo and its suburbs.

The fact remains, cities need to be planned. If, like in Sri Lanka, they are not, then smaller changes are needed to encourage progressive mobility. The further people have to commute, the more traffic they cause. It is impossible to create more and more roads for cars without substantially damaging the liveability of a city, so the only alternative is to improve accessibility.

The highway-obsessed mindset of policymakers must also change. Improving public transport would be cheaper and would have greater benefits for the people, and whichever Government accomplishes it would at least leave behind a semblance of a positive legacy in historically difficult times.