And, coming out of the meeting today, Minister Zabaneh is assuring the Belize Bus Association that there is no 'ill will' toward operators who chose not to join the National Bus Company. However, he warned that the government will be equally firm with everyone, stating that private operators must comply with the same stringent regulations being enforced on the national fleet.
Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transport
"We assure them that that is not the case. What has been occurring for the past three months or so is that we have been tightening enforcement overall. So things like having a spare tire or having a jack and the equipment to put on a tire or having a fire extinguisher, these are things that they should have on their buses."
"And we have been tightening up overall on that. So that continues to occur as we go forward. And they know what the regulations are. They know what the conditions of their permits are. So it's not like we're creating anything new and saying gotcha and that, no, no."
"We just are insisting that the same way the national bus company is improving, right now we are working with the same fleet, but between now and the end of next year, we transition to a brand new electric fleet."
"The same way we expect you to work on your operations and improve them. And so we are not here to, in any way, create any hindrance to them, but to make sure that their services are also improving."
And when it came to them wanting a seat on the Transport Board, their seat was held by Andy Shaw, the owner of Shaw's bus, who has now joined the NBC. To dispel concerns, the Minister said he is open to giving them new representation.
Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transport
"Remember now that the National Bus Company is a bus operator now on its own rights, and Mr. Shaw is a shareholder of that company. So he's an owner of the national bus company. And so as such, he represents an operator, and that's what the legislation calls for with respect to the governance, right, of the sector."
Reporter
"Do you consider, though, that with the changes now, the other parts, the other members should be represented, get a seat?"
Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transport
"No, no, we believe in representation. So that's part of the discussion. We haven't come to that point yet, but I'm sure we will discuss that with them."
