KUCHING: The introduction of the BAS.MY Kuching stage bus service will improve public transport and reduce congestion in the city, says state Transport Minister Datuk Seri Lee Kim Shin.
He said the service under the federal Transport Ministry’s Stage Bus Service Transformation (SBST) programme, will commence with six buses plying the first route from Open Air Market here to Serian.
“Altogether there will be 56 buses under the SBST covering 10 routes in phases in Kuching, further improving public transport services in the city.
“The routes will cover areas such as Bau, Serian, Bako, Kampung Benuk, Batu Kawa, King Centre, Muara Tebas, Taman Malihah, SMK Matang Jaya and SMK Agama Matang 2,” he told reporters at the commencement of the service here yesterday.
Lee said the buses were equipped with CCTV, GPS tracking, and disabled-friendly features.
“With these new buses, we hope more people will use public transport,” he said, adding that his ministry was working closely with the Transport Ministry and state Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB) to ensure the smooth implementation of the SBST programme. “We hope this project can be extended to other parts of Sarawak as well.”
State CVLB chairman Michael Kong said the Open Air Market-Serian route connected vital locations such as the Sarawak General Hospital, The Spring mall, Bangunan Sultan Iskandar, Vivacity Megamall, Emart Tabuan Jaya, Sarawak Heart Centre and University Malaysia Sarawak.
Kong said the buses were equipped with electronic ticketing machines and cash boxes for fare payment.
To encourage higher ridership, he said a monthly concession pass was available at RM50 for unlimited rides on all BAS.MY services.
Students, persons with disabilities and senior citizens can travel for free by applying for a concession card.
