The Hon. Ananda Wijepala
Hon. Ananda Wijepala rejected claims that all decorative bus fittings were being removed, stating that only unlawful fittings linked to road accidents would be targeted. Citing about 12,100 road deaths over four years, he said the initiative would now proceed as a three-month educational and awareness programme with the cooperation of bus and three-wheeler drivers, schoolchildren, the public, the IGP and bus associations to improve road safety.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, Hon. Radhakrishnan claimed we are removing all decorative parts from buses. That is incorrect. We are removing only unlawful fittings that contribute to road accidents and have been installed for a long time. Over the past four years, about 12,100 people have died in road accidents. Certain illegal fittings on buses contribute to these accidents. We launched an awareness campaign, initially asking for removal within two weeks. Now we will treat it as an educational programme over three months, with the cooperation of bus and three-wheeler drivers, schoolchildren and the public. This is to protect pedestrians, passengers and drivers.
¶ 02 This morning the IGP and bus associations met, and the associations agreed to support. Over the next three months, with the public’s participation, we will implement this programme.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Wednesday, 8 January 2025 ·No. 1737023464031571 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Ananda Wijepala. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 8 January 2025. No. 1737023464031571. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/27667