Demarcating Separate Lane for Passenger Buses

 Minister of Megapolis and Western Development, Patali Champika Ranawaka  said   day before yesterday,   that a recent census taken  revealed  more than ten million vehicle movements within the Western Province per day.

 In order to reduce  the traffic congestion in Colombo and suburban areas, a pilot project will be introduced  demarcating  a separate lane for passengers buses.

The Minister further  said,  the recent census revealed that during the rush hour time from 6am – 9am, around 8,000 people had travelled in 180 passenger transport buses while 9,000 persons travelled in 4,700 private vehicles showing that the private vehicles had carried only two passengers per vehicle.

 The Minister also said the poor  standard in   public transport  and the increase in income has diverted people to private transportation methods. If public transport  is developed  like in Western Countries, people will prefer  public transport to private transport,observers said.