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| Sunday, 23 June 2002 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Are private bus drivers on a killer mission? by ANTON NONIS The question doing the rounds in town now is whether private bus drivers are on a killer mission. Five fatal accidents involving private buses have been reported within a week in Colombo and the suburbs. The rate at which private bus travellers and pedestrians have been victimised is so high that the authorities are seriously considering what action should be taken to discipline drivers and make things safer for all road users. General public opinion is that most of the private bus drivers are not competent to handle their vehicles and that they should be prevented from driving. Colombo traffic police Senior Superintendent, Alfred Wijewardene, said that there are numerous causes for these accidents. They could be the driver's fault, mechanical fault of the vehicle he is handling or even the fault of the pedestrian. Improvement in behavior of both drivers and pedestrians is called for. Although the number of vehicles on the roads have increased rapidly in the past few years, there has been no relative increase in specific roads which had given rise to traffic congestion in the city. The Commissioner of Motor Traffic (CMT), E.Jinadasa, sees the increasing number of accidents as mainly due to irresponsibility on the part of drivers. "Provision of transport is a sacred service, but there is not the least sign of it. There is a lot of competition on the roads. Private buses race along the highways endangering the lives of everyone", Jinadasa said. It has been found that most of those who operate private buses had purchased them by financing and have to pay the finances monthly. This may be the reason why they load the buses to the maximum. The Commissioner said that there had been several occasions when the conductors had taken over the driving when the driver was not available, which is highly dangerous. He is of the opinion that having a valid licence is no guarantee that the holder is competent in driving. Competency comes with maturity, Jinadasa said. The Colombo Motor Traffic Department will draw up plans to produce good drivers in the future. Driving will be taught to children from their school days, he said. Consequently, Jinadasa said that the CMT will introduce `Student Driving Licence' (SDL) from next year. A child who has reached age 15 could obtain the SDL. Once they prove that they are able to drive without causing any accidents, they will be issued with a permanent driving licence, the Commissioner said. |
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