The Free State is taking steps to transform and modernise its subsidised public transport system, with a focus on expanding opportunities for historically disadvantaged operators and emerging businesses in the bus industry.
The Free State Department of Community Safety, Roads and Transport held the inaugural meeting of the Public Transport Infrastructure Committee last week to develop a roadmap for transforming the Public Transport Operating Grant (PTOG) and the provincial bus industry.
The committee brings together the provincial department, the National Department of Transport, municipalities and the Provincial Regulatory Entity to discuss the future of subsidised public transport in the province.
Discussions focused on subsidised bus contracts operated by Maluti Bus Services in Qwaqwa, Bethlehem and Harrismith, as well as Interstate Bus Lines, which serves Mangaung and Soutpan.
The transformation process aims to broaden meaningful participation by historically disadvantaged operators and emerging enterprises while ensuring that public transport services remain safe, reliable, affordable and accessible to commuters.
Further consultations with municipalities, operators and other stakeholders are planned as the process moves forward. The department has emphasised that transformation must extend beyond the vehicles on the roads to include ownership, management and economic participation in the province’s public transport sector.
