Another bus tragedy

Despite the government’s efforts to minimise road accidents, especially due to speeding buses and three-wheelers, another tragedy occurred in Thalawa yesterday (10). A 17-year-old student who was going to sit for the A/L examination died in the tragedy, while 47 others were injured. In September this year, another bus tragedy in Ella killed 16 individuals after a bus toppled over a precipice. The government took measures to build a bund to prevent buses from falling off this cliff, but these are short-term measures to address the larger issue at hand. Successive governments have failed to provide solutions to careless driving of public transport, be it buses or three-wheelers. A Road Safety Action Plan 2025-2026 had been drafted while committee reports on several fatal accidents were handed over to the Parliament’s library. But whether policymakers have learned any lessons from these incidents remains a doubt. The cabinet of ministers has also approved the Road Protection Action Plan aimed at tackling serious road accidents in Sri Lanka. As of September 2025, 1960 people have lost their lives to road accidents, while a total of 1843 road accidents have been reported so far this year. Therefore, while approving all sorts of plans, the government must expedite action to save people’s lives. 

Athula De Alwis 

Malabe