Britain to Give Long Credit for Trolleybus Purchase'?
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LONG-TERM credit facilities for the purchase of trolleybuses by Colombo have been offered to the mayor by British manufacturers. The condition attached to the offer is that the municipality should have
the power to extend routes to other parts of the city.
The Government's reaction has been that all tram routes should be converted to trolleybus working before trolleybus services were extended. At present only nine miles of trolleybus route are operated. Under an expansion scheme, 43 miles would be worked. The scheme would cost an estimated Rs.32m.
The manager of the municipal passenger transport department has said that oil-engined buses operated in residential areas should be discarded as they were a danger to health.
The mayor wishes to import trolleybuses 35 ft. long and 8 ft. wide. Experiments have been made With a crushloader.
• The commission which inquired into passenger transport in Ceylon, have reported that a permanent transport commission with a full-time paid chairman should be set up. Members should include the Commissioner of Motor Traffic and three other independent persons to be nominated by the Govern ment. The board would have full control of all road transport in Ceylon.
Another recommendation is that there should be a corporation of all Colombo bus operators, whilst a Government-sponsored undertaking should take over inefficient bus companies.
In each of the nine provinces there should be a regional transport board, and the purchase of spares and tools for bus companies should be centralized.
The Minister of Transport has stated that action has already been taken in forming a Colombo bus corporation, and that he would soon have a scheme ready.