Southern Expressway...
Southern Expressway:Protests by private buses halt SLTB bus service
Protests by private bus operators, who also demanded the right to operate on the expressway, resulted in the Sri Lanka Transport Board suspending its passenger bus services on the Matara–Colombo Southern Expressway hours after it was launched yesterday.
The Matara Road Passenger Transport Company and a group of private bus operators alleged to have organised the protest.
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Thousands of commuters were stranded after the sudden suspension of bus services
The Galle–Matara stretch of the Southern Expressway was declared open by President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Saturday and it was only yesterday that the passenger transport service began its operations between Colombo and Matara. Only six SLTB buses were permitted to operate from the Matara bus terminal to Maharagama. Meanwhile, most of the passengers preferred to travel on the expressway and this resulted in a sharp drop in the number of passengers travelling on the Matara-Colombo main road causing much anxiety to private bus operators. However, Postal Services Deputy Minister Sanath Jayasuriya’s private secretary told SLTB officials to suspend the bus services on the expressway until the dispute was settled. Matara SLTB Depot Manager A. Ranawaka said the bus services were inaugurated on the instructions of the authorities but it was suspended because of protests by some individuals. Matara Road Passenger Transport Company President Aruna Halpage said a decision had been taken to operate SLTB and private buses on a pre-arranged timetable from March 30 but the SLTB had arbitrarily started operating bus services from yesterday.