Buses travelling for over eight hours may continue without a night halt if they have two drivers on board. The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport made this decision after consulting with bus operators following their recent appeal. The bus operators cited passenger inconvenience and increased costs as the primary reasons for their appeal to the Cabinet.
The Bhutan Construction and Transport Authority, BCTA, issued a notification requiring passenger buses travelling continuously for more than eight hours to stop overnight, starting this month.
However, some bus operators appealed to the Cabinet to reconsider the notification.
Some bus operators BBS spoke to said the requirement was inconvenient and adds extra expenses for passengers.
Sangay Dorji, a bus service operator of Meto Transport Service said “The reason why we appealed to the government was very important because it was a call from the nation. In this sense, we must know that travellers are common people. So, it has financial implications. Secondly, it is time-consuming.”
He added that the recent consultation with the ministry was important and beneficial to the public.
“We had a consensus that this would be lifted based on some conditions. These conditions are reflected in our agreement, saying that for buses travelling more than eight hours, we must deploy two drivers.It will be on switching mode.”
Meanwhile, the BCTA currently faces challenges in monitoring bus movements due to manpower shortage.
The authority has requested the ministry to establish a new extension office in Nangar, Bumthang, on the East-West Highway which would enable bus inspections to be conducted there.
Previously, buses had to travel 17 kilometres to Chamkhar for inspection. The BCTA has also requested additional motor vehicle inspectors for Thimphu, Phuentshogling, Monggar, Samdrup Jongkhar, and Gelephu.
Currently, eight routes between Thimphu and eastern Bhutan require more than eight hours of continuous driving each day, with 11 public transport buses operating on these routes.
Devika Pradhan
Edited by Sherub Dorji
