Priority bus service from next month for persons with disabilities

Colombo, March 12 (Daily Mirror) - With the aim of safeguarding the mobility rights of persons with disabilities who have so far received little attention within Sri Lanka’s public transport system, the Ministry of Transport and Highways together with the Clean Sri Lanka programme will launch a dedicated priority bus service next month for persons with disabilities, the President's Media Division (PMD) said.

The programme is being implemented in line with the government’s vision of building “a country that guarantees equal opportunities and protects human dignity for all.”

Under the first phase of the project, 10 modern, low-floor, air-conditioned buses, designed to allow easy access for wheelchair users, were brought to the Hambantota Port on the 10th of this month.

These buses are scheduled to be transported to Colombo this Saturday and officially handed over to the Metro Company thereafter.

Each bus, which has 33 seats, can accommodate up to 80 passengers at a time, and they are equipped with specialised technical features to ensure the safety of wheelchair users.

As a pilot project, the service will operate with the Makumbura Multimodal Transport Centre as its hub. Accordingly, buses will run every 40 minutes during morning and evening hours on the routes Makumbura–Pettah and Makumbura–Kadawatha. The routes have been planned to directly cover major healthcare centres, particularly the Maharagama Apeksha Hospital and the National Hospital in Colombo.

For the operation of this service, 28 selected drivers and conductors from the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) will be provided with special training. This training, conducted by the Ministry of Social Services, will include bus technology and passenger safety, professional ethics and passenger care, as well as sign language for communicating with passengers with disabilities.

Based on the success of this pilot project, the government has planned to import a further 100 buses in August to support the transport needs of both persons with disabilities and the general public. 

In parallel, the Clean Sri Lanka programme also plans to renovate or newly construct bus stops in line with accessibility standards to ensure they are disability-friendly.