RESTORING BUS IN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

A Busworld session had restoration of buses in public transport as the focal point. Deepti Thore details the action roadmap that has Asian cities partnering with industry.

- Deepti Thore

Public transport was hit massively in Asian cities with the onset of the pandemic and due to low ridership, operators are forced to think about their future viability. To support the public transport bus industry and lay a roadmap for their restoration, Busworld in association with Messe Frankfurt hosted a webinar where industry experts from Asian cities deliberated on how to fight the crisis and restore the buses in public transport. With several restrictions imposed due to the pandemic, it has become a challenge for the bus operators and manufacturers to return to normalcy. Speaking about changing preferences of people choosing individual vehicles over public transport, Jan Deman, Director, Busworld Foundation pointed that this shift will lead to increase in traffic and air pollution for which collectivisation of public transport is very important. He stressed the need for collaboration between the private and public bus and coach sector for the goals to be achieved.

To boost the sector, Busworld will be representing bus and coach manufacturers and operators in the environmentally sustainable transport forum organised by the United Nations, to be held in Japan from October 18-28, 2021. “During this conference, a declaration will be signed by over 30 Southeast Asian countries on the future of their transport system,” Deman announced. The purpose of the conference is to ensure that the decision-makers of public transport systems are aware of the solutions that the industry has to offer, he added. Witnessing lack of participation from the private sector in the previously held conferences, Jan pointed that it is crucial that the public authorities create incentives to make the conferences attractive for the private sector to participate, especially in Southeast Asian countries having the strongest growth in population.