By The Pulseline News Desk
The Government plans to award approximately 89 bus route permits during November under a revised selection process aimed at improving transparency and accountability in the allocation of public transport services.
Deputy Minister of Transport and Highways Prasanna Gunasena has said the National Transport Commission (NTC) would move away from its previous permit issuance practices and introduce a competitive process based on publicly advertised vacancies and clearly defined scoring criteria.
The new procedure will require interested operators to respond to newspaper advertisements, with applicants evaluated according to an established scoring system.
“We have established a scoring procedure. Through that, we believe we will be able to award around 89 bus permits within November by publishing newspaper advertisements and adhering to the due procurement process,” Gunasena has said.
He has said the Cabinet had approved a Cabinet paper establishing the selection criteria and procurement procedures governing the allocation of route permits.
However, the Deputy Minister has clarified that the revised system would apply directly to the NTC, noting that public transport services administered by Provincial Councils fall outside the direct purview of his Ministry.
The proposed reforms come amid wider efforts to address structural weaknesses in Sri Lanka’s public transport system, including the availability of buses, the financial viability of private operators and the mechanisms used to determine passenger fares.
Bus fare formula to be revised
Alongside the permit allocation changes, the Government is also preparing a revised formula for calculating bus fares, moving away from an approach that places excessive emphasis on fuel prices.
Gunasena has said the existing method of determining fares primarily on fuel costs did not adequately reflect the broader operating expenses faced by private bus operators, the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) and Metro services.
The proposed formula would take into account a wider range of expenses, including bus maintenance, spare parts and other operational costs.
“When determining bus fares, we intend to switch to a formula we are preparing that factors in all the costs of bus maintenance, spare parts and all those associated prices,” he has said.
Private bus fleet faces contraction
The reforms are being introduced against the backdrop of a reduced operational bus fleet, with the number of private buses operating daily having fallen to between 11,000 and 12,000.
According to the Deputy Minister, many private bus owners were forced to sell their vehicles during the COVID-19 crisis as mounting financial difficulties made it increasingly difficult to sustain operations.
The contraction has placed additional pressure on the country’s public transport network, highlighting the need to improve the operating environment for private bus operators while strengthening state-run services.
The SLTB currently operates approximately 5,000 buses daily out of a registered fleet of around 7,130 vehicles, accounting for roughly one-third of the country’s public bus transport operations.
The Government’s proposed changes therefore extend beyond the allocation of new route permits, touching on the broader financial and regulatory framework governing public bus transportation.
Whether the revised permit allocation system and comprehensive fare formula will help attract more operators, restore fleet capacity and improve service reliability will be among the key tests of the Government’s transport reforms.
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