PETALING JAYA: Mohd Fitri Razali’s near-death experience on an express bus to Singapore recently illustrates why it must be a legal requirement for long distance trips to have a second driver.
“It was near Melaka at 4am and there was only one driver. I think he was sleepy and tired. The bus kept swerving from the left to right lane and we almost got into an accident,” recounted the 41-year-old.
“After that incident, I am too afraid to take the bus again,” said Mohd Fitri, who commutes regularly to Singapore and took the bus as he could not get a flight ticket.
Audrey Nelson, another regular Klang Valley-Singapore commuter, shared similar concerns.
“I’ve never seen any drivers being swapped throughout the five-hour trip.
“Passengers might assume safety protocols are in place, but when you actually observe the whole journey, it’s worrying to see there’s no visible back-up or rest break,” said the 25-year-old.
She added that fatigue among long-distance drivers could lead to reduced focus and slow reaction times, which increase the risk of accidents on highways.
“Yes, I definitely feel there should be two drivers to take shifts.
“One person staying behind the wheel for hours without rest is a real road safety concern,” she said.
Currently, some bus companies operate without mandatory driver rotations for journeys under a certain duration.
Road safety expert Datuk Suret Singh said a major reason bus drivers overworked themselves was because companies paid them according to the number of trips they took on.
“We need to stop the current practise of providing trip incentives, which is a major contributory factor to driver fatigue as it creates a culture of chasing after trips. It is unhealthy,” said Suret, who is Road Safety Council of Malaysia executive council member.
Suret said the authorities should introduce a drivers’ card to screen them so that they don’t drive more than eight hours per day.
“When a person drives for more than eight hours it means they have done a complete shift and should not be allowed to drive.
“This may help address driver fatigue.”
However, one of the best ways to upgrade the quality of drivers is for the industry to offer permanent positions with suitable pay instead of the current low salary, said Suret.
Another express bus passenger, Devid Rajah, who commutes from Penang to Kuala Lumpur regularly, said that not only do drivers not switch, they tend to drive dangerously.
During one trip, which stretched to six hours instead of the normal four due to holiday traffic, the driver did not switch at all, Rajah said, adding that the second driver seemed to sleep throughout the journey.
