Dear Editor
For as long as bus operators are not all being paid a fixed flat monthly rental for their much-needed services (and are instead left to fight and race each other for passengers and to speed to complete as many trips as possible to make their money), we will continue to have as many road deaths as seems to now be the new norm.
Public transportation is transportation provided usually by the Government. We instead have private transportation being provided to the public. But with public transportation, the Government pays the bus operators.
With public transportation, the Government is the boss, not the passenger nor the bus operator. The passenger does not pay the bus operators. The passenger purchases bus-passes from the Government and presents that in the bus instead of cash. The Government, in turn, uses the monies raised from the sale of bus passes to pay the bus operators. With public transportation, the Government has complete control over how high or low bus fares should go. And with public transportation, there are no accidents worthy of report because the bus operators do not need to pick up as many passengers, nor make as high a number of trips, as possible to make their money.
Similarly, our Government would save our lives if they too collect cash from passengers and then use it to pay the bus operators one flat equal monthly rental to cover gas, maintenance and driver salaries, etc. (The Government can also provide gas subsidies for the operators).
Let the bus operators become public servants, serving the public for a monthly fee.
This way, our Government need not buy new buses. But most importantly, our bus operators would see no more benefit in speeding nor overtaking on turns nor racing nor overloading nor overcharging nor working only during profitable hours nor only on profitable routes nor using touts to pull and tug at passengers, etc. None of these activities would increase their monthly payment.
This new system can be phased in. Alternately, a date can be announced for a complete switch-over, along with a deadline for bus operators to sign up.
Too many of us know someone who died recently or was at least injured in a bus accident that proper public transportation could have avoided if it were being provided.
Sincerely,
John M Fraser LLB
