By: Aminata Sameena Sesay
The Sierra Leone Road Transport Corporation (SLRTC) says it will construct rest places for passengers travelling along the provincial routes.
SLRTC General Manager, Isaac Ken-Green told a news conference at the Ministry of Information that SLRTC is to build the rest places at Masiaka, Moyamba Junction and Bo for passengers travelling over long distances.
He said the corporation is to to also purchase 30 new buses and will be “working on digitalizing the operation of those new buses, especially their payment system”.
He said that the institution has developed ways to incorporate several payment systems for different sectors and classes of passengers, namely digital payment, mobile phone payment and through an agent. He added that the new system of payment will be introduced to end onboard payments and queuing at bus stations.
The General Manager said that the buses will be tracked through attached trackers to enhance the process of digitalization and they will also install cameras to avoid overloading of passengers. He went on to say that the installed cameras will enhance the avoidance of confrontations between passengers and conductors.
He said the government of Sierra Leone through the Ministry of Transport and Aviation with support from the World Bank is implementing the Sierra Leone Integrated and Resilient Urban Mobility Project (IRUMP) in Freetown as a pilot with the aim of improving access to quality public transport, address climate resilience and to improve road safety in selected areas and enhance institutional capacity in the transport sector.
The SLRTC boss said the restructuring of the institution from SLRTC to the Sierra Leone Public Transport Authority (SLPTA) was in progress to regulate buses in their different stations. He also said the SLRTC cannot play the role of regulating public transport and that the best way to ensure efficiency was to play the role of a regulator.
Ken-Greene said he inherited dilapidated buses and chaotic institutional arrangements at bus stations that have challenged his institution’s effort to effectively serve the people of Sierra Leone.
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