'Park and ride' goes up to Wadduwa from Nov 1

Irangika RANGE

The Cityliner premium bus service 'Park and Ride' which operates from Moratuwa to Colombo Fort will be extended up to Wadduwa from November 1 as a measure to curb the traffic congestion and man power loss.

Addressing a media-briefing in Colombo yesterday, National Transport Commission (NTC) Advisor M.B.S. Fernando said the NTC has also selected a site to develop a "Park and Ride" in Kadawatha following good public responses.

He said the present service operating from Moratuwa to Colombo Fort has been able to attract a considerable volume of passengers. Already 117 daily commuters who travel by car or motorcycle, park their vehicles at Katubedda and ride in a luxury bus to the Colombo Fort.

Places in Talangama, Katunayake, Homagama, Ja-ela and Werahera have also been identified to operate the Cityliner service.

In addition to the office service, plans are afoot to commence the Cityliner service to cater to the shopping crowd in the afternoon. It will be operated on main roads and streets where main shopping malls and supermarkets are located.

The NTC commenced this service under the instructions of Transport Minister Dullas Alahapperuma with the main objective of reducing traffic on the roads by private vehicle owners who motor to the City daily.

The NTC implements the service to reduce the number of private vehicles entering and operating within the City from 200,000 to 150,000 and thereby reducing traffic congestion, consumption of fuel and environment pollution.

"The project would save an annual petrol and diesel cost of Rs.560 and Rs.260 respectively spent by motorists who enter the Colombo Fort in their private vehicles due to traffic congestion in Colombo and its suburbs," he said.

"We operate 24 turns for the two way service daily at a reasonable price," he said. Turns will be increased up to 150 by allocating more buses to the project.

This facility provides parking for around 150 vehicles and it operates from Moratuwa and Fort via Nawam Mawatha. Initially the Moratuwa-Fort service will operate every 30 minutes between 6.30 a.m. and 8.30 a.m. and will return from Fort from 4.30 p.m. to 7.30 p.m.

Park and Ride schemes are often marketed as a way to avoid the difficulties of driving in congested traffic and to avoid the cost of parking within the City centre.

The Cityliner service is designed for commuters to read, relax or even work on their laptop computers while offering low cost and less stressful travelling to the City.