AOPT: Need to cut some routes, add others

Chairman of the Alliance Owners of Public Transport (AOPT), Roy Raphael, is calling on the government to urgently review and restructure the island’s public transportation routes in response to shifting commuter patterns and persistent inefficiencies.

Raphael told Barbados TODAY that discussions with residents around the island over recent months have revealed the need to reassess the viability of a number of routes, whereas additional service may need to be put in place for others.

He said some routes have become obsolete while others are experiencing increased demand. “The whole question of route rationalisation needs to be looked at,” he said.

Raphael also pointed to a growing preference among commuters for cross-country travel, which allows them to bypass the Bridgetown terminals and avoid long wait times.

“They are utilising the services of the bypass buses, city buses, and so on, and you see the results of that. You are seeing now, some pirates have already taken over the route — early morning or less late at night, trying to provide a service for those persons as well,” he said.

The AOPT boss highlighted some of the areas in need of urgent attention, citing Fairy Valley, Christ Church as a priority. He said many PSV operators were still reluctant to service that route because it was unprofitable.

He said residents of Eden Lodge, St Michael wanted a more direct access to their community and had requested the AOPT to open discussions with the Transport Board about the possibility of merging the Holders Hill and Eden Lodge routes.

Raphael said his organisation had written to the Transport Board on the matter. “We [outlined] the route, and they promised to merge the two services so that you can allow Eden Lodge persons to get into their residence. Now, sometimes it takes about two and a half hours sitting in the terminal, and then when they do that, they have to catch a Jackson bus in order to get into Eden Lodge.

“So I’m making an appeal publicly to the Transport Board and the Ministry of Transport, asking the minister to look into this matter, as well as the member of parliament of the area,” Raphael said.

“We have a lot of elderly people who live in the district, and they need to get into the district…. We had an issue where a young lady got robbed a night coming from the Pricemart area, so it’s not good,” he added.

shamarblunt@barbadostoday.bb