Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Jagath Vithana criticized Metro buses, calling it unfair that passengers must stand while paying double the fare.
“Passengers have to stand in Metro buses, and the ticket price is also doubled. Isn’t that unfair? Even Buddhist monks have to travel while standing,” adding that Metro bus operators should not be allowed to act arbitrarily in this manner.
“We can carry 48 passengers right now. According to their decisions, about 80 passengers are standing and traveling. How much injustice is happening today? A person who stands and travels also pays double the cost and a person who sits and travels pays the exact same amount,” he added.
He also noted, “When looking at fuel consumption, it takes two liters of diesel per kilometer. Why? Because we didn’t bring electric buses, If we had brought hybrid buses that operate using electricity and diesel, which are powerful and cause less pollution, it would have been much more successful. He added that if advice had been taken from the public, it would have been much better.
“It is good to provide facilities, but even more than facilities, the clergy shouldn’t have been left out. The clergy have to struggle. Yesterday, a very senior head of our sangha gave me a letter, stating that the clergy have to travel standing. In this country, when we talk about the clergy, it’s not just Buddhist monks; Catholic priests, Muslim maulvis and everyone else is included,” he added.
Vithana also questioned whether the new buses would be cost-effective, noting that they would still depreciate over time and require maintenance, including the replacement of spare tyres and tubes. (Newswire)