Public transport, essential development
published: Monday | February 3, 2003
THE EDITOR, Sir:
IN TRYING to solve the problems with the JUTC, Jamaica might consider taking a look at other national transportation systems in America, Canada, and Britain. In those countries, bus companies encounter the same problems Jamaica faces in terms of revenue, ridership, maintenance, scheduling, driver performance, safety, security, and customer relations.
With publicly funded mass transit, they face the additional problem of political indifference and/or interference and cronyism. These challenges are overcome, however, when all parties involved come to a mutual understanding of the role of public transportation in a region they serve. A properly managed public transportation system is essential to the development of the region and the country. When run well, it reduces the need to have so many cars on the road, and lessens the weight of traffic, especially during peak hours. Less traffic also lessens stress and accidents on the road, and lessens air pollution.
Another benefit is reduced national consumption of expensive petrol, which (in Jamaica's case) has to be imported. It also reduces wear and tear on the roads themselves. These factors are as important for Jamaica, a small, poor, and energy-import dependent island as it is for New York City, a highly urbanised and congested metropolis.
Public transportation is a business, and like any good business, it SHOULD make a profit in accomplishing goals; but the profits should go into expanding and improving services and rewarding the personnel responsible for running it. A mass transit system is successful when more and more people are taking the bus instead of taking the taxi.
New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority is managed and subsidised by the City and State of New York and many of its executive personnel are politically appointed. The problem of revenue was a persistent one. The MTA was losing money due to competition from smaller, privately owned bus companies. Then in 1997, the MTA introduced free transfer between buses and subways, and introduced discounts for passengers who take the bus and subway on a weekly and monthly basis. It also introduced discounts for senior citizens, the handicapped, and students during school days.
These factors had the effect of lowering the fare for passengers significantly, which in turn created an increase in ridership. As ridership increased, so did revenue, enabling the MTA to improve their services, such as buying more buses, hiring and training more drivers and maintainers, improving their schedules, and getting better feedback from the passengers themselves.
In the mass transit business, whether private or state-run, the key to making a profit is INCREASED RIDERSHIP that is, more people should be leaving their cars at home and taking the bus. The presence of so many taxis legal or otherwise and cars on Jamaica's few fragile roads (to say nothing of the absence of any passenger rail system in the island) is a damning indictment, not only of the managers' alleged incompetence, but also of the Govt's lack of understanding or seriousness in this matter.
