– Commuters call for end to Guyana’s ‘outrageous minibus culture’

By Naomi Parris

RECENT incidents of gross misconduct on our minibuses, as depicted in several viral videos on social media have sparked a much-needed conversation to address what some would call ‘the outrageous minibus culture’ in Guyana.

Over the past few weeks, several videos were posted to one of the world’s most popular social networking websites, Facebook, showing several minibus operators behaving in a disorderly manner and endangering passengers’ lives.

In one of the most recent cases, a video surfaced of a Route 44 minibus operator putting children clad in their school uniforms out of the bus, while it was still in motion.
That apart, many mini-bus operators have been increasing fares during peak hours, and overloading their buses, exceeding the normal capacity of 15 passengers per trip. Some operators have even taken it so far as to have passengers ‘doubling up,’ sitting on other passengers laps just to catch an extra $200.

The Guyana Chronicle spoke with several commuters who shared similar experiences of instances where mini-bus operators were either rude, or operated in a manner that endangered their lives.

Odessa Gillis, a primary school teacher recalled the time when she was involved in a mini-bus accident; while there were no fatalities she noted that the traumatising experience has caused her to be more vigilant and vociferous when travelling. As such, she pointed out an instance when she got off a mini-bus before reaching her destination because she felt unsafe and was disrespected and decided to exit the mini-bus while on her way home.
“What I have observed, is that some passengers don’t mind the speeding …if I object, I remember objecting once to the speeding and the noise and other passengers looked at me as if I did something wrong or I said something wrong. I told the driver to turn it down and the driver turned up the music instead and I asked to come out at the next corner,” she stated.

She added that many young people appear to be okay with the mini-bus culture as it is and some even encourage it; however, she is one passenger that will not encourage the rotten culture.

“I’m not being old-fashioned, but sometimes you can’t take that loud banging in your ears along with bass after you come [out] of there; your head keeps hurting and worst yet if you had a hard day at work,” she stated.

Shelia Glasgow, a pensioner, when asked about the mini-bus culture, stated that it is a culture that needs fixing right away.

Ms. Glasgow noted that it is a culture that sees young people– especially young men– acting in an unscrupulous manner. She added that even the schoolchildren are involved, since she has travelled in several mini-buses in which schoolchildren were heard either singing along to explicit music, urging bus drivers to go faster and some even voluntarily sitting on each other’s lap.

Ms. Glasgow like many other folk uses a cane for support to manoeuvre, and because of this she stated many of the younger bus drivers and conductors who dominate the roads refuse to stop for her. The ones who do stop tend to be very impatient, rude and they even try to rob her of her change when it is a “short drop.” While this is not always the case, she highlighted that mini-buses might soon be thrown off the scene if the current culture continues to grow as it is.

“However, this is not always the case; they are a few mini-bus drivers and conductors who are considerate and kind, realising that they too will get old one day…but if we keep condoning the ones who aren’t so good, it may get out of hand and the law may not be able to control them,” she stated.

Schoolchildren and the ‘Regular Bus’
Many of the older folk would question what a “regular” bus is, but if you’re a young millennial you already know.

Those are usually the buses you would find older folk ignoring when they pass by; the ones with loud music emanating from the sound systems; some can even be identified by their colourful exterior.

One of the most recent and disturbing incidents occurred when students were seen jumping from what can be considered as one the ‘regular buses’ while it was still moving, while some were seen watching in disbelief as the schoolchildren involved seemed to be having the thrill of their lives, laughing and heckling as they left the bus.
While there is still the extant issue of students loitering and bus-riding, the recent incident has taken the mini-bus culture to another level, which requires all the relevant authorities to act swiftly before the already deplorable culture reaches the point of being irreversible.
Recently, the Ministry of Education clamped down on students loitering at the bus parks during school hours; while the ministry’s truancy campaign was praised, it is believed that efforts to extricate schoolchildren from the mini-bus culture will need more than just the ministries initiative, but the entire community on deck, since ‘it takes a village to raise a child.’

Mini-bus operators should be trained
Recently there have been some talks of the Ministry of Business and the United Minibus Union collaborating to host training to employ strategies aimed at curbing the ‘lawless practices’ of drivers, conductors and touts.

The President of the United Minibus Union, Eon Andrews, had told the Guyana Chronicle that the ministry has been able to train over 250 drivers in an effort to stamp out the ‘lawlessness’ and reduce the carnage on the roadways.
The training had begun in June 2019, just after the code of conduct for mini-buses was introduced.

The training, which is expected to be held soon, will address tyre safety, insurance, fire safety and hospitality. It will be held during the off-peak season for mini-bus operators and particularly during the school vacation periods.