By John Myers, Jnr. Staff ReporterPUBLIC DEFENDER Howard Hamilton has expressed his displeasure with the driving practices of some drivers of the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) buses.
Mr. Hamilton, who has been making regular trips on the public bus service, since the launch of his public campaign on September 5 to encourage citizens to park their vehicles and take public transportation to reduce traffic congestion in the Corporate Area, said some drivers needed to improve their driving, as they were not supporting the safety and comfort of passengers who travel on the buses.
"Those who are not driving carefully don't stop in a gradual manner, (they are) not mindful of passengers who are either seated or hanging onto straps (or rails)," Mr. Hamilton lamented. He pointed out, "and it's not because of an emergency, they (just) stop suddenly when they approach a stop sign and swing around corners."
AN EXAMPLE
In citing an example of this, Mr. Hamilton explained that on taking the number 76 bus in the evening, which travels the Barbican to downtown Kingston route, on returning from work on Harbour Street to Liguanea, the bus travels up Duke Street and, "above North Street there are two double bends, when they go around them they just swing around and you have to hang on."
"Some of them are model drivers, in that they drive in a manner which is conscious of the fact that they are carrying passengers... and I find the conductresses courteous and not only with me."
In addition to the poor driving practices displayed by some drivers, the Public Defender is recommending improvements be made to other important areas of the bus service.
Among his recommendations are: posting of bus numbers at the rear of buses so that the commuters can properly identify buses from behind; and improvement to the ventilation system on buses, especially when it rains and windows are closed.
Also, he is recommending that bus schedules be placed at strategic locations to inform commuters of bus times and proper streamlining of the smart card system to facilitate flexibility of travel for the commuter.
