TOPICS
The day before, I took a public bus from Kamaladi to Boudha. I realised that it had been quite a while since I had commuted by a public vehicle. I chose to experience the public transportation service for a day.
While standing alongside other fellow passengers, I became nostalgic about the olden days when I used to travel from Kapan to Ratna Park and vice versa on a regular basis.
Back then, you could consider yourself lucky if you found an empty seat in the evening. Other days, you found yourself squeezed in to the limit while commuting on a micro bus. It was surprising to see the conductor manage over 30+ people in a 14-seater micro bus. All these memories came alive as I witnessed how public transportation hadn't changed even after so many years.
For someone who has a private vehicle, it might be a tiny inconvenience while boardinga public vehicle for a day or two.
Imagine those having to do so regularly. Given the alarming increase in fuel prices, the experience of commuting on a private vehicle everyday for work has become an expensive affair.
The irregularity of our public transport system can be enhanced with systemic planning and execution. For instance, the newly elected mayor could initiate a 'bus pass' at subsidised prices, which would allow commuters to travel on Sajha buses within the valley for a month or so.
In a nation like ours, emphasis on equality is used loosely.
While the allotment of seats in public vehicles for senior citizens and differently-abled citizens are justified, the allotment of seats for women in public vehicles seems absurd. The passengers should have the option to offer their seat willingly to another person irrespective of gender and without any legal obligation. The stakeholders must provide equity in services by identifying the problem at hand.
Increase in the number of private vehicles is another major concern as cities get overwhelmed by them. If the government could stretch the routes of Sajha buses and add more buses on the existing ones, it could encourage more people to use public vehicles and prevent traffic congestion and emission of harmful fumes by vehicles.
It's high time that the government introduced a subsidised public transport system so that the citizens could rejoice in them. The development of a nation determined only by GDP while negating the HDI (human development index) can be counterproductive. The government should emphasise on channeling resources to select areas where most of the countrymen could benefit. Revamping the public transportation system could be a good start.
A version of this article appears in the print on June 17, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
