School children stranded in transport chaos
There is upheaval in the transportation industry once again tonight … this time it’s between National Transport and G.O.B. The bus company and the western residents they service are angry that the Department of Transport cancelled a run, it just recently approved. Copies of letters which N.T.S.L. provided to News Five indicate that on September ninth, Transport C.E.O, John Briggs approved the new run and then eight days later on the seventeenth, cancelled it. According to Operations Manager, Philip Jones, the Benque to Belize City route was a social provision since students were only charged half price. Jones says while it was not profitable, it is necessary.
Philip Jones, Operations Mgr., Nat’l Transportation Services Ltd.
“This morning you had customers and students calling different radio shows complaining that the services have not been provided this morning. We‘d just like to inform the general public that we apologize but it’s beyond our control. We have received a letter yesterday evening from the Department of Transport, cancelling the shuttles that we have been providing for the students from Unitedville from six in the morning until nine a.m. in the morning and then return from three until six in the evening. There are a lot of concerns with parents and students and workers with the overcrowding of busses and the students on the road not reaching to class early. National take up this challenge and we are applying to the commissioner and he has allowed us to continue the run and unfortunately yesterday we received a letter to discontinue the service. We have not received any reason why to discontinue the service, it just states that we should discontinue the service. It was a temporary permit but right now, Marion, that is the arrangement that the department is making until they regulate. They issued it because they have heard the heard the complaints like us. The seven-thirty leaves Benque at seven-fifteen and leaves San Ignacio at quarter to eight and also allow students that live in Esperanza and the neighbouring villages to reach their school on time and it free up the flow where at that time we have a huge customer base coming towards Belize city along the villages. This service returns at eight-thirty and that was also cancelled—in the night.”
But according to Transport C.E.O Briggs, there is no real need for the run and the only thing that the additional bus provided was chaos on the road.
John Briggs, C.E.O., Ministry of Transport
“I did revoke that temporary permit; it’s only a temporary permit whilst the Transport Department is in the process of touching up new schedules for bus routes countrywide. Our concern is to move people at the time they need to be moved. If they are too many busses in a particular time period, obviously the busses are not operating efficiently, they are running half empty and with the price of fuel, that is not satisfactory for anyone.”
Marion Ali
“But why isn’t that run necessary now? It was necessary eighty days ago and now it’s not?”
John Briggs
“It would actually appear that it is not really necessary. The number of people along the road, by the information I’ve received, is that the people are being picked up by the other operators operating along that road.”
Marion Ali
“So how do you explain those numbers of people calling in to the talk shows and complaining that they can’t reach school and work on time because the run has been pulled? How do you explain that?”
John Briggs
“I cannot explain that because I did not hear the comments this morning.”
It appears that the children will have to look at alternative transportation as the decision from the Transportation Department is final.
