Public Service Vehicle (PSVs) owners and operators are bracing for a hit from the increase in petroleum products.
Chairman of the Alliance Owners of Public Transport (AOPT) Roy Raphael and former President of the Association of Public Transport Operators (APTO) Morris Lee have both predicted that the industry, which is also battling high maintenance costs due to poor roads and other expenses, will be feeling the full impact of the increase very soon.
However, Lee, a longstanding owner and operator, indicated that members of the PSV sector should see the increase as a tremendous opportunity for economic advancement.
Government announced the latest increase from midnight, Sunday, March 6, pushing gasoline to $4.13 per litre, an increase of 14 cents; diesel to $3.46 per litre, an increase of 17 cents while kerosene will be $1.80 per litre, an additional 22 cents.
The adjusted price of the 100-pound cylinder is $159.96; the 25-pound cylinder $45.09; the 22-pound cylinder $39.85, and $36.22 for the 20-pound cylinder.
Raphael explained that the over 500 PSVs and approximately 2 500 taxis are yet to see the return of the number of passengers they recorded prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Definitely with the increase in fuel, it will really have a significant impact on our operations going forward. I don’t think that at this time the passengers can take any increase in bus fare and I would not want to put it on the table. But enough to say that we would have to speak to the Government to see how we can get some kind of savings from the high gas price.
“We will discuss this with our membership very shortly but I just don’t know how best we can deal with it. People would say that there is a worldwide crisis going on right now. What we can clearly state is that Government can do a lot more to assist us,” Raphael said.
He added that one of the long-term solutions to combatting the high fuel costs would be to transition to electric vehicles. The chairman said that some time ago, leaders in the PSV sector approached the Ministry of Energy about making provisions for the transitioning to electric vehicles through international funding.
Meanwhile, Lee pointed out that findings from research he conducted over the past two years through speaking to international suppliers, have shown that there is an opportunity for PSV owners to import a “retrofit kit” that takes the current PSV as we know it from diesel or gasoline to battery-operated.
“You don’t have to buy a vehicle. You just have to remove the engine and fit this battery-operated kit on to it and obviously then you put in the battery pack and you have a battery-operated electric PSV vehicle.
“Now if we can successfully do this, it will open not only an opportunity for other vehicles in Barbados to go in that direction, but it will also give us the opportunity to do something like this throughout the Caribbean and this can be a major foreign exchange earner for Barbados.
“The kit will have bits and pieces from various suppliers, but the actual kit as a package will be unique, so that technically will involve intellectual property and all of that kind of things,” Lee said.
Lee suggested that a partnership can be formed with Government for bus stands to be used as charging stations for the battery-operated PSVs once that system becomes available on the island. He said the new system has the potential to not only create additional employment opportunities for Barbados, but can also reduce “the close to BDS$50 million” the industry uses in diesel per year.
The operator said the opportunity to introduce the researched retrofit kit to Barbados is a reason PSV owners and operators should not worry about the increase in fuel prices.
“Our priority as an industry is to essentially shift that $50 million from the traditional recipients that aint do nothing for the industry and put it back in the hands of the operators. This is giving the operators economic control over their destiny. So all the fuel increase will do now is to speed up that process and motivate the guys to put more energy into getting a different kind of energy,” Lee said. anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb
