Come next week, the expressway between Babesa and Changzamtog will have one of the lanes dedicated for buses. Despite criticism from parts of society, the City Bus Service office is hopeful this initiative will encourage more people to take the city bus. This is expected to reduce the number of cars on the road and as a result ease traffic congestion. However, city bus users on the other hand still need convincing. They fear the buses are already crowded and the priority bus lanes would only aggravate the issue if more people use the city bus service.
The city buses that run on the expressway are always packed especially during peak hours in the mornings and evenings.
Passengers can wait for the next bus that should arrive eight minutes later. But since the buses often come late, most choose to squeeze in the one that arrives.
“In the morning, I normally use the city bus between 7 and 8 because it doesn’t stay that packed. But it is crowded sometimes because people go to the office around that time too. In the evening, it is not that packed because I use it at around 5 and 6, but when we use the bus at around 3 and 4, it is packed because there are students going home after school hours have ended,” said Samir Mongar, a resident.
“People have to arrive on time for work, so before 9, the bus is always packed when I come from Taba. Until I arrive at work, they keep on taking in passengers. We cannot tell them to stop taking passengers, so they take as many passengers as they can. Sometimes, we even arrive late,” said Tashi Dorji, another resident.
According to the bus drivers, a city bus has a carrying capacity of 28 seated and 20 standing passengers.
There are currently 20 city buses that ply on the expressway. And even the city bus drivers are doubtful these buses will be enough if the number of passengers increases.
“If they make a bus lane, it is comfortable for the bus to ride without getting stuck in the traffic. However, there will be problems too. The private vehicle owners will choose to ride the bus, and the bus will be more packed than it already is,” said Phub Tshering, a city bus driver.
Meanwhile, the City Bus Service Office under the Thimphu Thromde says there won’t be such issues. The Director, Pasang Tshering, says since the bus lanes will allow city buses to move about without disruption, passengers won’t pile up at the stops as they do right now due to delay in bus arrival. However, he added the office will carry out a survey once the initiative starts and act accordingly.
There are more than 18,000 city bus card users in Thimphu.
Singye Dema
Edited by Yeshi Gyaltshen
