After months of delays, commuters will have to wait even longer for the arrival of the 50 new buses earmarked for the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC).

Transport Minister Daryl Vaz said there have been further delays with the arrival of the units from Costa Rica, with the new estimated arrival time set for August 16.

Former minister of transport, Audley Shaw, had disclosed during his presentation in the Sectoral Debate in May of this year that the 50 new buses, 45 diesel and five electric buses, would have arrived by the end of May.

However, the delay of the buses have been blamed on logistical issues in Costa Rica. Vaz told Our Today last week that the new buses were expected by the end of July or early August.

“They were in Costa Rica for almost four weeks. Those buses were shipped out of China on a vessel that had steel and grain. When it got to Costa Rica, it’s only a specific berth that can take it to offload the grain and the steel. So, we lost a month in Costa Rica, and the last update I have, obviously because we can actually track the ship now that we have the information, is that it is in congestion in the Panama Canal, and it is due to arrive here on the 16th of August,” Vaz explained.

The transport minister, who was speaking during a tour of the Half-Way Tree Transport Centre in Halfway today, August 3, expressed optimism that the units will arrive in time for the start of the new school year.

“When [they] get here, it’s going to be another production to get them off of the ship [because] they need a crane. I’ve never heard of that in my life, but it is what it is. We just need to get the buses here. August 16 is very close to back to school, so it will put [the managing director of JUTC Paul Abrahams and] JUTC under severe pressure to get them off, service them, put them on the road, and then fix the ones that they pull off,” Vaz explained.

Currently, the JUTC has an operating bus fleet of 160. The transport ministry aims to have 310 operating by September. Vaz said the repair of damaged buses, the arrival of the new ones, and the current fleet should push the tally of operating buses to 310.

JUTC workers and commuters frustrated 

The constant promise of new buses and slow action on the side of the Government have left many commuters frustrated.

For years, the bus park has been crowded with long lines of passengers waiting hours for the arrival of buses that cannot handle the demand.

During the tour of the Half-Way Tree facility today, JUTC mechanic Odeanie Sibley, brought the commuters’ frustration to the attention of the transport minister, stating that the new buses are needed now.

“Every day there is media, and there [are] rumours circulating with the company. [We hear] ‘the bus dem soon reach, the bus dem deh a wharf, the bus dem deh a Panama canal, the bus dem divert,’ and there is no bus,” expressed the JUTC employee.

He shared that for years he has been an advocate for the arrival of new buses, and has worked tirelessly to repair the buses that the company has to ensure that people get home safely. However, new buses are needed immediately.

“Twenty-three bus [and] every evening fight out there suh. Every evening fight fi load the bus. The dispatchers dem, some a dem cah manage the crowd, some workers drop dem hand. The problem is, I need, and not only me, everybody, we all need the buses, and we need them like now,” said Sibley.

In response, Paul Abrahams, managing director of JUTC, said some of the statements made by the JUTC mechanic were inaccurate and sought to provide clarity on the issue.

“In relation to the comments, I think they are totally out of context. We have never had fights in the centre. We do not have fights in the centre. We do have lines, yes. It’s not a secret, and yes, we are in desperate need of the buses, and yes, the buses are delayed. We all know that everyone knows that, and yes, the buses are desperately needed, and it does cause a bit of congestion, but we await those buses to elevate some of the congestion,” Abrahams explained.