One electric bus less. Vandal blamed

Transport Board commuters are one short of the year-old China-made electric buses after it was knocked off the road, not by a bad battery or faulty motor but by a vandal’s stone.

The act will cost the state bus company more than $1,000 as a front window and electronic sign were smashed as the bus drove along the 16A St Patrick’s route, said Chief Operations Officer Lynda Holder who called in reporters to see the damaged bus Wednesday.

As the bus, BM615 was plying the route, someone threw a stone shattering the front left side window which has to be removed and replaced.

Holder said this means that the bus is now off the road until Friday to allow for it to be fixed at a labour cost of just under $1,000. She said the Transport Board also faces an additional cost of buying the window’s tempered glass.

She told reporters: “We cannot replace a small piece of the glass. We have to replace the entire window and this is not something that is even stored here in Barbados. We have to bring it in as a spare part. So we work very closely with Caribbean Auto Glass to make sure that whenever we have an issue, they are able to help us replace it and fix it. But for the remainder of the day, and unfortunately, we also have inclement weather, this bus is not going to be available to transport passengers back and forth.”

Holder made clear that the Transport Board has zero-tolerance for bus vandalism, and that the attack is under police investigation, particularly since the Government invested over $22 million on the electric buses to solve the country’s severe transit issues a year ago.

While it was not the first time a Transport Board bus has been vandalized, Holder said it cannot be allowed to continue as it diminishes the value of the bus company’s moves to increase its fleet and improve its services.

The Transport Board decided to publicize the incident in order to inform members of the public that engaging in vandalism has long-term effects, and to urge them not to forget the joy the nation experienced when the vehicles arrived on the island, the COO said.

“It isn’t just that the bus is off the road,” Holder told reporters. “It is the cost of bringing that bus back on the road. It is the loss of goodwill when we cannot service some area. And then there is the financial issue. The bus has to be repaired and we have lost the ability to bring in revenue, and all of this is going to reflect on the taxpayers because we are members of the crown, the bus is owned by the Crown.”

Holder said BM615 will be thoroughly checked for any other damage before it is put back on the road.

(anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb)