A gazette notification making it mandatory for passengers in expressway buses to wear seat belts will be issued tomorrow (August 31), Minister of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation and Leader of the House, Bimal Rathnayake, announced.
The Minister made this statement during a recent meeting of the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation, held in Parliament under his chairmanship, the Department of Communication of Parliament said.
He explained that the initiative is part of the “Clean Sri Lanka” programme and noted that a grace period of about three months will be provided for installing seat belts in school transport buses, office transport services, leisure tour buses, and other passenger buses operating on expressways.
Minister Rathnayake pointed out that the price of seat belts has increased from around Rs. 2,000 to between Rs. 5,000 and Rs. 7,000, stressing that the Consumer Affairs Authority should monitor this issue.
Public opinion had also been sought on making seat belts mandatory in long-distance buses, with almost all respondents expressing support. Accordingly, the government plans to extend the regulation to long-distance buses in the near future. The survey, conducted by ‘Citra Innovation Lab’, gathered data from about 2,100 passengers, drivers, and private bus owners, with a report already submitted to authorities.
The Minister further revealed that new legal provisions will be introduced to inspect and rate the condition of vehicle spare parts before allowing vehicles onto expressways. Vehicles with substandard tyres will not be permitted to operate.
He also announced the establishment of a welfare fund for drivers in the private transport sector, including those operating three-wheelers and vans. A draft bill for this fund will soon be presented to Parliament.
The committee also discussed creating a proper mechanism for parking long-distance and expressway buses. In addition, two sub-committees were appointed to provide recommendations on railway service improvements and port infrastructure upgrades.
The construction of the Kadawatha–Meerigama expressway section, scheduled to begin in September, was also reviewed, along with other issues raised by Members of Parliament.
The meeting was attended by several MPs and government officials.
