Metro, railways, land, sea taxis to reform travel mode

KUWAIT CITY, March 29: The Environment Affairs Committee at the Municipal Council on Sunday held its first workshop for the fourth session, chaired by Alia Al-Farsi, with the participation of Committee Rapporteur Abdullah Al-Anzi and committee members Waleed Al-Dagher and Fahad Al-Khunain. The workshop, titled “The Public Transportation System in the State of Kuwait - Bus Passenger Waiting Stations,” started with the speech of Al-Farsi, who asserted that public transportation is the cornerstone of urban development, specifically a safe and accessible means of transport. She highlighted the difficult challenges that the public transportation system in the country is currently facing, citing structural and operational issues.

She said these challenges include overlapping roles and responsibilities among the operating entities, irregular bus schedules and routes, lack of adherence to the designated waiting stations, limited infrastructure at waiting stations, and lack of a unified design for their layout. She also pointed out that the Fourth National Structural Plan consists of a comprehensive vision for developing the transportation system by diversifying and integrating modes of transportation, including buses, the metro, railways, and land and sea taxis to build an integrated and multimodal transportation network, which meets the needs of the population and urban growth. The workshop, which lasted about four hours, concluded with extensive discussions on the importance of regulating public transportation companies, standardizing operational procedures, activating the oversight role of the General Traffic Department, strengthening partnerships with the private sector, and taking advantage of academic and research expertise. The following recommendations were presented at the workshop:

• Conduct a design and supervision study for the public transportation system and passenger waiting stations by contracting with a consulting firm in line with the National Structural Plan. This study should include a comprehensive survey of bus stations, assessment of their technical and operational conditions, establishment of unified standards, specifying their locations, and linking it with the development plans.

• Coordinate with the relevant authorities to regulate bus traffic and lay down a plan to remove the neglected and ineffective stations.

• Coordinate with the competent authorities to conduct a study on establishing a public transport authority or an entity specializing in public transportation affairs at the State level. This entity should regulate transport services and develop regulatory frameworks to enhance investment and support economic and social development goals.

By Inaas Awadh Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff