Bus fleet likely to be suspended
PUTRAJAYA: The inquiry into the case of a bus company responsible for four fatal accidents in the last four months yesterday found that it had breached most of the provisions of the Safety, Health and Environment Code of Practice for public transportation.
For the slew of offences, the company, Konsortium Bas Ekspres Semenanjung (KBES), can expect its 232 licences -- one for each of its buses -- to be suspended for at least a month.
Entrepreneur and Co-operative Development Minister Datuk Noh Omar said this punishment, likely to be meted out by the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB) soon, would serve as a warning to KBES to buck up and rectify its problems.
"We will call them back after a month to see if they are abiding by the law. If they comply, we will continue to put them under close supervision for two months... if they fail, they can expect to stop their operations as their licences may be revoked."
Earlier, KBES chairman Abdul Jalil Maarof sat for four hours before the inquiry board. Looking solemn as he left the inquiry room, he said that the company would try to overcome its shortcomings.
He hoped that the ministry would consider giving the company time to iron out its problems, including the difficulties in finding employable express bus drivers.
This, he said, had forced the company to overwork its drivers, allowing those involved in accidents to continue driving.
Abdul Jalil said management problems had also hindered the company from functioning properly.
Asked if the company had initiated the payment of compensation to victims of the accidents, he said it had yet to do so.
CVLB investigations revealed that since December, KBES had been responsible for four accidents which resulted in six deaths and injuries to 19 passengers.
The latest occurred at Km265.1 of the North-South Expressway this month in which a passenger was killed and 16 injured.
Noh also announced that all express bus companies would have to install global positioning systems in their vehicles.
They will then be obliged to monitor their buses and drivers to ensure that the law was not flouted.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/National/2215873/Article/index_html
Is this the Konsortium bus company with the red colored buses?
Sad...
Semenanjung Express buses grounded
ALOR STAR: The Road
Transport Department has suspended for a month the operations permit of
Syarikat Konsortium Bas Ekspres Semenanjung Bhd, which runs the
Semenanjung Express bus service.
The suspension, which took
effect yesterday, covered the company’s all 232 express buses, said JPJ
Enforcement director Salim Parlan.
He said the suspension was
imposed after an inquiry by the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board
revealed many of the company’s buses were involved in road accidents.
JPJ
enforcement officers would be stationed at all 36 bus terminals in the
country to ensure the suspension order was complied with, he told
reporters after a traffic operation here last night.
Among road
mishaps that involved the company’s buses occurred on Aug 15 last year
at Km256.9 of the North-South Expressway, near Menora Tunnel in Kuala
Kangsar, in which four passengers were killed and 25 others injured,
six seriously, when the bus they were in skidded and overturned in a
ditch.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Fri...icle/index_html
On
a side note, it was reported that another KBES bus met with an accident
near Kulai prior to the suspension. The accident left 1 person dead.