Marked improvement in JUTC services in Portmore

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the transport minister for the induction of new buses on JUTC routes, which is benefiting the people of Portmore. At 6 a.m. there were a number of new buses on the road, which had large and clear displays of the varying route numbers. I must confess that since living in the parish since 1997 one has never experienced anything like this.

The frequency of the service has also improved, one is seeing a bus every 10 minutes for different routes. The last time I saw this turnaround was sitting at the Sawgrass Mills in Fort Lauderdale during the 1990s when a bus arrive and depart almost every 10 to 15 minutes. At the Greater Portmore Depot in Portmore there were buses leaving every five minutes.

We hope that this efficiency in service continues and the people of Portmore continue to benefit. A lot of passengers have the same problem, that of scheduling of buses, which was not efficient. The government should also consider investing in acquiring an automated scheduling system, such as the ones currently used in the US and the UK, as the ones used by the JUTC is manual system, which is not efficient.

For instance, they could acquire the systems that are used by Amtrak (although we do not have developed railing systems, but this could be a long-term investment). Moreover, it would be wise to invest in some transportations scheduling software so that the JUTC recoup its initial investment on those buses, so that it does not continue to incur massive losses in the long run.

The JUTC also faces competition from the taxi route and coaster buses, who pick up the slack when there is a delay in the system.

DANIEL MORGAN