Transportation is a vital factor in the social and economic progress of a country. Transport exerts a strong optimistic influence on economic development due to the human productivity generated through passenger transport. In Sri Lanka, the principal mode is bus transportation that accounts for approximately 80 percent of the commuter kilometres while rail transport also provides an important contribution. The current availability of 5,300 state-owned Sri Lanka Transport Board buses and a privately owned fleet of around 23,000 clearly does not seem sufficient to provide quality and timely transportation to the public.
Congestion on roads
Sri Lanka currently has a road network of approximately over 100,000 kilometres maintained by the Road Development Authority, Provincial Councils, and Local Government institutions. Most of the main roads are either carpeted or tarred and maintained reasonably well. However, the roads in almost all urban areas throughout the country are congested on most working days while congestion in the rural areas is also increasing with each passing day.
Although Sri Lanka is a small island nation, the vehicle population stands at a staggering 8.1 million causing horrendous congestion on the country’s roads. There are 1.1 million three- wheelers and 4.6 million motorcycles plying on the roads in Sri Lanka. However, although over 112,000 registered buses are available according to various sources, only around 28,000 of them are used for public transport, by both private and state-owned operators. Similarly, in the railway sector, to cater to a passenger base of 147,000, the trains collectively have only 25,000 seats. This imbalance between demand and supply causes mayhem in public transport.
To prevent the economic downturn and reduce the enormous amount of foreign exchange outflow for vehicle imports, the Government took a bold but essential decision to impose a temporary ban in March last year. This step directly impacts on the current road congestion. If the trend continued as before, in the next several years, the roads would have been in chaos and unreachable affecting the public severely.
From an outsider’s point of view on the public transport matters related to buses, both private and the SLTB, inefficiency caused by the inadequacy of seats, overloading, and cleanliness are three of the major setbacks. Also, the lack of punctuality, unruly and rude behaviour of the workers, and unsafe driving are other reasons for public outcry on the issue.
Safety is one of the main priorities of public transport that commuters demand. The number of accidents and fatalities is increasing alarmingly. Thousands of deaths are reported annually in Sri Lanka of which most are due to speeding and reckless driving. According to a report prepared by World Bank transport specialists, Sri Lanka has an average of 38,000 crashes, 3.000 fatalities, and 8,000 serious injuries. The report divulges that the annual road accident deaths are twice the average rate of high-income countries and 70 percent of the crashes involve low-income- commuters and motorists.
Despite stringent actions by law enforcement authorities, the number of daily accidents continues without a considerable decrease. To educate the public, the Sri Lanka Police website has cited 25 causes for accidents with eleven recommendations to prevent them. If this information can be made public, the impact on the prevention of accidents could be exceedingly high. If awareness campaigns can be organised with the patronage of media institutions, particularly, the electronic media, the result could be enormous.
The severe traffic congestion in urban areas of Sri Lanka is a nagging issue for both commuters who use public transport as well as those using private vehicles. The intolerable number of vehicles on the roads, especially in cities, causes this congestion resulting not only in public spats and harassment but also negative financial implications.
Besides, haphazard and uncoordinated road constructions and unplanned digging of roads by other government agencies such as Telecom, Water Board, and local authorities make the traffic situations worse. Most of this construction-related work should be done at night. For example, the road from Mirihana to Embuldeniya, was recently upgraded and almost all construction work was done during the nights without causing an unpleasant experience to commuters.
Public transport
A staggering estimated number of 1.1 million people enter the Colombo city every day using public transport while approximately another 500,000 arrive in private vehicles. This large number of public and private vehicles not only causes severe inconvenience on the roads but also creates a negative economic impact due to wastage of fuel. The shortage of parking areas, insufficient amenities, and poor public transport facilities add misery to the public.
The recent introduction of the new ‘Park and Drive’ city bus service is an encouraging and constructive step taken by the Government. The previous attempt on this concept was a total flop, perhaps due to mismanagement. This time around, the effort by the young State Minister of Transport and his team seem to be more efficient. The only negative point is the lack of publicity given to inculcate confidence in the public. Once again, the media involvement must be heightened for better public awareness.
The Presidential vision, ‘Vistas of Prosperity’ has pledged a high-quality transport service with a green transport concept. One of the promises was to introduce the ‘Park and Ride’ facility which has been already fulfilled. Even though the Government is experiencing a severe cash crunch, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is evidently doing his best for public well-being. When the current situation on Covid-19 subsides, the Government is certain to carry out the pledges given to the public transport sector.
Urban areas
A developing middle-income country such as Sri Lanka needs an efficient transportation system. A well-functioning public transport system is vital to meet the demands of mobility. Particularly, public transport efficiency in the urban areas is imperative to take commuters safely to their workplaces on time. At present, a colossal waste of time on the roads takes place due to the congestion, squandering valuable working hours of the people who use public transport.
In addition to the money wasted on fuel due to long delays, the overcrowding in buses and trains, increase mental stress that can directly affect productivity.
In this writer’s opinion, scholars of the Department of Transport and Logistics of the University of Moratuwa have done several types of research on public transport, traffic on roads, and other related areas. Those released to the public domain seemed pragmatic and realistic, although the number of recommendations implemented by the authorities is a question mark up to now. For the long term needs of the country, the authorities should use the findings of these experts and devise plans to modernise and upgrade public transport.
Despite the efforts of governments, the public transport sector shows a lacklustre development. The people using public transport still confront the same problems that they experienced in the past few decades. Although a segment of private bus operators exists, the public has not seen a conspicuous improvement in numbers or quality since the inception. Therefore, a national level plan, perhaps in line with the Presidential vision on the subject of transport pledged by the manifesto, is a dire need of the country.