Editorial | The case for a well-run bus system

The state-run Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) is projecting operational loss of $14 billion for the upcoming financial year. For a company that has been struggling with financial challenges over many years, this comes as no surprise. The future of the JUTC appears to hang in the balance, and this is a matter of national significance.

It takes big bucks to establish and maintain a proper working transportation system, and some amount of subsidy is inevitable as is seen in all major public transit systems around the world.

Investment in the transportation sector can have a tremendous impact on the economy. Moving people and goods in a safe and efficient manner enables economic growth. A good transportation system provides mobility, but it must also pay attention to fuel use, air quality, congestion and carbon emissions.

The JUTC has the exclusive right to provide transit service to the Kingston Metropolitan Region (KMTR), and has established partnerships with some 400 private operators to provide supplemental services. With the greatest respect, a few hundred private operators trying to eke out a living do not a transport system make. Taken as a whole, what currently passes for a transit system serving the KMTR is pitiful.

Public transportation requires a lot of volume to work, and passenger loads might not even compensate for the infrastructure and other development. As it stands now, public transportation in the metropolitan area of Kingston and St Andrew is left to the poorer segment of society. Owning a motor vehicle is the ambition of every young person who sees it as a way of escaping the trap of an inefficient behemoth that masks as a transportation system. Indeed, many people who cannot really afford a motor vehicle are struggling to buy petrol and maintain their vehicles. But, to them, the struggle is better than having to contend with chronic delays or face the possibility of being attacked and robbed.

POSITIVE SIGNAL

The fact that the JUTC has ordered 50 new buses sends a positive signal. Obviously, some will be used to replace old stock, but where will the passengers come from to fill these new buses? Even with the inclusion of modern, quick-charge electric buses, publicly run buses cannot compete with private cars unless there are deliberate strategies to get people to park their cars and ride the bus.

And where should this begin? We suggest leading by example; the ministry and its heavyweights should demonstrate that there is nothing wrong with using the public bus system, and begin to tout the benefits, including affordability, that could accrue. That is, of course, if they believe this to be true.

The other essential action should be the prioritisation of maintenance and replacing old infrastructure to eliminate frequent breakdowns and lateness. Commuters should feel confident that the buses will take them to and from their destinations safely and on time.

If the JUTC is to avoid the fiscal cliff from which it hangs, it seems that it has to be part of a grand plan to reduce congestion in the capital of Kingston. Typically, motor vehicles are parked indiscriminately and, even where parking garages exist, people are reluctant to use them. It should be so expensive and difficult to park in the well-travelled areas of the city that motorists would avoid these areas. This would lead to a reduction in pollution and less congestion in the streets.

For those who doubt that a proper public transportation system can exist, ask the people of Singapore. In a recent McKinsey survey, 86 per cent of the people said they were satisfied with the service. Pretty impressive; but this comes as no surprise. The country will not appear too high on the Human Freedom Index, but it sure checks many of the boxes which contribute to a good quality of life.