These JUTC buses (left) were yesterday seen parked alongside buses owned by the National Transport Co-operative Society at the terminal in Half-Way Tree. - Norman GrindleyTHE JAMAICA Urban Transit Company's bus service into the Greater Portmore area of St. Catherine got off to a smooth start yesterday, Sterling Suarez, the company's president, said.
Commuters travelling between Greater Portmore and Half-Way Tree welcomed the JUTC as an improvement on the "less-than-desirable" bus service they said they have had to put up with over the years.
It was the first day of the phased implementation of JUTC services on the bus routes operated by the National Transport Co-operative Society (NTCS) for the last five years. The gradual take-over follows nearly two-and-a-half years of negotiation between the Government and the NTCS which operates the Northern and Portmore franchises.
"I am pleased with the service. Now I can travel to work in comfort," Mark Daley who works in Tropical Plaza on Constant Spring Road, St. Andrew, told The Gleaner yesterday. Another commuter, who asked not to be identified, said she was "glad to get rid of them (the NTCS)."
For the JUTC president, yesterday could not have started better. "I understand that they (the commuters) are quite pleased," Mr. Suarez, who spent part of his day observing the transition, told The Gleaner. He said that from an operational standpoint, there were no hitches. Buses were dispatched on time and they ran on schedule.
Only four routes were operated by the JUTC yesterday -- 14A, 17A, 18A and 20A -- with all terminating in Half-Way Tree. Some commuters who expressed dissatisfaction that JUTC buses were not yet operating in their communities, could experience a JUTC bus ride today when the service is extended to four routes terminating in downtown Kingston.
The Government last week paid $338 million to acquire the Northern and Portmore franchises as it moved to resume full control of the bus service in the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region. Dr. Peter Phillips, Transport and Works Minister, said the transition would end on or before April 20. By then all NTCS buses which are to be purchased by Government will be removed from the roads.
