APTO: School bus proposal will hurt us

Public Service Vehicle (PSV) operators are calling for a seat at the planning table when the government explores ideas on how to improve the island’s public transport.

Chairman of the Alliance of Public Transport Operators (APTO), Roy Raphael, told Barbados TODAY that he was concerned about the rolling out of a proposed dedicated school bus service, warning that the initiative could slash their earnings and cost drivers and conductors their jobs if implemented without discussion.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced that the government was exploring the creation of a school bus system as part of wider efforts to improve the public transport network. She made the comments while speaking at the St John edition of the Ideas Forum, noting that the proposal formed part of a national dialogue on revamping transport services to better serve commuters, particularly schoolchildren.

But Raphael said the move could have far-reaching consequences for the already struggling PSV sector.

“I would like the government to have discussions with us first before doing that, because removing schoolchildren definitely will have a significant impact on our earnings,” Raphael told Barbados TODAY. “Although we are seeing significant drops in passenger travel across the board, we’re saying that by government looking to have such a decision made, [it] will have an impact on us, and that we would like to sit down with government to see what plans they have in place.”

He made it clear that operators are not against a separate school bus service in principle, but stressed that any such change must be implemented collaboratively to avoid job losses and further strain on operators.

“We want to really sit down with them to see what impact it will have on us, because when you look at it, we still have a greater number of schoolchildren catching the public service vehicles,” he explained.

Raphael noted that while a free school bus service already exists under the Transport Board, many students—especially those outside the established routes—still rely on PSVs to get to and from school.

“We rely solely and heavily on those persons who do not catch the school buses. I would be happy to start discussions with the stakeholders before implementation to see how best we can work this out, because we still employ a significant number of persons—conductors and drivers—and if that happens, we will have no choice but to reduce our numbers.”

Asked whether PSV operators should be included in the proposed school transport network, Raphael said he welcomed the idea of issuing permits to vetted private operators, but acknowledged public concerns over PSV discipline.

“I would like that, but some members of the public may not want it, because [of] the behaviour of some public service vehicles out there,” he admitted. “But I still hold my view that we can, but it will have to be discussed with us . . . If you do it across the board, it will have a significant impact on us.”

Raphael added that a mixed system, where private PSV owners could be granted special school transport permits, could make the service more accessible and affordable to families not served by the existing school buses.

He is now calling for immediate talks with the Ministry of Transport, the Transport Authority and other stakeholders to iron out the implications of the proposed changes and to avoid destabilising the PSV workforce.

Meanwhile, Raphael said, operators are also being forced to scale back services in parts of rural Barbados due to deteriorating road conditions. He confirmed that PSV operators have begun pulling out of areas like Checker Hall, St Lucy, where pothole-ridden roads are damaging vehicles and driving up maintenance costs.

“Some persons already started to withdraw the service from that area,” he reported. “It was reported to us by some commuters that some operators are trying to avoid the road because of the condition. Some top operators also complained . . . and I was told that some transport workers also complained.”

Raphael said operators are not asking for entirely new roads, but a targeted patching programme to keep essential routes serviceable and safe—particularly for older commuters who cannot walk long distances.

“The roads that most concern us are Shop Hill, the roads from Sweet Vale on to Redlands, Bridgefield, Fairview Valley, and some roads in Eden Lodge where contractors started work but have not completed it,” he said. “It is creating some problems for our commuters.”

He confirmed that APTO plans to lead a media tour of the worst-affected routes in St Lucy and other parishes in the coming days.

“This is not political. I’m not interested in that. But for the concern of our members who have to pay a high gas price, a high diesel cost . . . and we are seeing an increase in maintenance while passenger numbers continue to drop; something has to be done.”

Raphael said he had received verbal assurances from officials at the Ministry of Transport that some repairs were in the pipeline but insisted that swift action is needed.

“Once that matter is resolved, I believe that we will resume our services normally,” he said. “But at this stage, the residents of St Lucy have been complaining, and some public service vehicles are trying to avoid the road.”

He also encouraged the public and media to engage directly with government officials to monitor progress on road upgrades and school transport planning.

sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb