SAD PLIGHT OF PASSENGERS USING BUS ROUTE NUMBER 140

Thousands of passengers travelling from Colpetty to several other areas face inconvenience due to the poor bus service on route No.140 from Colpetty to Wellampitiya. They said they have to wait for at least one hour to take a bus. Passengers said judging from their experience, the bus service in route No.140 was the poorest bus service in the country. They pointed out that the bus operators on this route make very few trips and that they keep the fully packed bus idling near the Colpetty railway station for about one hour in the hope of squeezing in more passengers. No buses are available on this route on Sundays and public holidays.

A passenger Wimal Sembakuttiaarachchi from Panadura said whenever he wanted to travel to Maradana to catch a train he had to wait for about one hour at the halting place opposite the Home Affairs Ministry.

“The SLTB does not have any buses operating on route No.140 and the passengers have been left to the mercy of the private bus operators who run the bus service with about three ramshackle buses. Our complaints to the Western Province Transport Authority fell on deaf ears. Thousands of passengers travelling to Town Hall, Eye Hospital and Maradana railway station face hardship due to the sad state of the bus service,” he said.

Another passenger Piyal Siriwardene from Aluthgama, an employee of a private establishment at Green Path said he attempted to travel to the Maradana railway station to take the Matara express in the evening on many days, but he missed the train for want of buses on the 140 route.

“Now I walk to Colpetty railway station and board the train to Maradana to take the Matara express. This is easier and quicker than waiting for the 140 bus. There are passengers who travel to Borella by the 175 bus route and proceed to Maradana by another bus when they want to take an express train in the evening. Cancellation of

SLTB DGM assures there would be an allotment to this route from the 250 new buses added to SLTB fleet

buses further aggravates the situation. The SLTB has abandoned this route, probably under duress of the private bus operators,” he said.

The passengers requested the SLTB to operate a few buses on this route for their convenience without leaving them to the mercy of the private bus operators who hold the monopoly of route number 140.

Meanwhile Deputy General Manager (DGM) of the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) P.H.R.P. Chandrasiri said 250 new buses would be added to the SLTB fleet soon and a part of it would be deployed in the metropolitan routes including 140.