The Public Transport Association, which represents route bus owners and drivers, says it wants to have talks with both the Transport Ministry and the Malta Transport Authority (ADT) about emission tests. At the same time it warns that if the authorities continue to enforce the law and bring to book owners/drivers whose vehicles are found to be emitting fumes beyond acceptable levels it will have no option but to take action.
Commuters also want action to be taken... against irresponsible bus owners/drivers who have been taking them for a ride in more senses than one for so long.
Enough is enough and commuters can only be wondering what a cheek can bus owners/drivers have to expect to continue flouting the law with impunity. The authorities have been dilly-dallying long enough and commuters must be thanking their lucky stars that, at long last, there is a politician responsible for public transport that is able and willing to take the bull by the horns.
That there are buses that emit black, possibly toxic, fumes is indisputable. There are likely to be quite a few of such offending vehicles too. The authorities, notably the ADT, have for long been saying they are addressing the matter but reality is there for all to see. The problem is far from solved and many a bus can still be seen smoking as it makes its way along Maltese roads, narrow or wide, close to pedestrians or afar.
A Transport Ministry spokesman told The Times last week that, over a period of 12 weeks, 108 complaints about emissions had been received in connection with just one bus. In the first quarter of this year, 98 tests were conducted on buses and 58 failed. If not the tip of the iceberg, this can only be representative of the prevailing situation. And, yet, people have been led to believe that the system whereby people could report smoking buses via SMS was working!
Three cheers for the Transport Ministry, and Minister Austin Gatt in particular, for making it amply clear that it is time for reckoning. The Times joins Alternattiva Demokratika and environment NGO Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar in urging the government to stand firm and not to give in to the unjustifiable demands of the bus drivers/owners.
The bus drivers'/owners' track record is not something to be proud of. There have been quite a number of times when the government authorised higher bus fares on the understanding that the service would improve. A subsidy scheme had also been launched whereby owners agreeing to substitute their old vehicle/s were given a hefty handout to do so. Yet, commuters are far from satisfied with the service they get and it would not be amiss to conduct an audit to find out how many of the "new" buses purchased within the framework of the subsidy scheme are in fact on the roads.
The only solution to cut pollution caused by road transport, ease traffic congestion and save fuel is by ensuring an efficient public transport system. It has become quite evident that a completely new approach must be taken and that building on what exists now is not likely to work. The Transport Ministry deserves public support to win this round so that it can go on to address other issues that will ultimately give the country and its people the sort of public transport service they really deserve.