Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nancy Shukri said a lab will be set up next month to look into the many issues and challenges facing the bus industry.

In November 2015, the Land Public Transport Commission (Spad) organised a similar lab for taxi services over several days at Sunway Putra Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

I had the privilege to move from group to group, listened to their findings and shared my views. I was impressed as the members of each group were earnestly doing their best to find the best possible solutions.

In October 2013, I participated in the ‘Taxi Fare Review’ held at the Sime Darby Convention Centre. I was in the focus group for consumers as an individual, and not from any association.

While it was normal for various stakeholders to safeguard their position and interest, I had no hidden agenda and always maintained a balanced view.

I proposed that budget taxi fares be increased to RM1.25 per km and RM24 per hour, a rise of 44 and 40 percent respectively, to ensure the rates are sustainable over the next few years.

In March 2015, budget taxi fares were finally increased to RM1.25 per km and RM25 per hour but cabbies were already impacted by the introduction of UberX in August 2014, with a starting fare of RM1.50, RM0.55 per km and RM12 per hour.

Likewise, express buses will face increasing competition from mobile apps offering true ride-sharing services that allow the driver to share costs, such as fuel, toll, and wear and tear, with passengers.

While Tripda is a ride-sharing app, Uber is a ride-hailing or e-hailing app but chose to describe itself as ride-sharing.

What Uber has done was similar to our KLIA taxi concessionaire. While Airport Limo is fine for a company name, our Road Transport Department had erred in allowing the number plate to use the letters ‘LIMO’.

As a result, the public and media often described budget taxis operated by the concessionaire as limousines. If the recent accident which killed the driver was a Proton Persona, then the car should be described as an airport budget taxi or airport taxi, and not airport limousine.

Such mix-ups should not be treated lightly as together, they add to the confusion prevailing in our society and in many industries.

Paradigm shift will empower them

Many of those participating in the bus lab are likely to be bogged down by their own misconceptions initially. A paradigm shift will empower them to see matters as they really are.

For example, the word ‘speeding’ is used too freely. Driving at higher speed is not dangerous when the driver, vehicle, road, traffic and weather are all in ideal conditions.

The danger is excessive speed, such as driving at 60kph can be risky at a roundabout. The actual cause of most accidents is rushing and not speeding, such as reversing out of a house where many children had been rolled over.

As for buses, it will remain a backyard industry as long as they are parked by the roadside overnight throughout the country.

Apart from bus stations, they must be bus depots allowing buses to be parked and cleaned overnight, and with facilities to check and rectify faults.

These depots will have shower facilities and sleeping capsules for the drivers to bunk in overnight. They are sound-proof and totally dark, allowing the drivers to have the soundest sleep and waking up fresh.

As bus depots cannot be built overnight, these sleeping capsules can be placed at or near bus stations, and also at the many Rest and Service Areas dotted along our expressways, which will benefit many sleepy truck drivers as well.

It is well known that many accidents involving heavy commercial vehicles were due to drivers dozing off behind the wheel, and stopping beside the road to take a nap had caused many passing vehicles crashing into them.

Many drivers will opt for a good sleep if it is convenient and affordable but a hotel room is not cheap. If the relevant authorities allow it, they will be no shortage of entrepreneurs offering sleeping capsule facilities throughout the country.