BELMOPAN, Wed. Mar. 16, 2022– At the request of governmental authorities, up and coming bus line Floralia has delayed the commencement of its new Independence runs by one week—an announcement which comes just three days after Belize Bus Association (BBA) secretary Ewart Metzgen briefly lamented the difficulties faced by operators in the industry, especially with the entrance of a new bus line, and less than a week after it was revealed that the Association had filed an application to the Supreme Court for road permits granted to Floralia to be rescinded and declared illegal.

“In a spirit of cooperation and to allow for a smooth transition between Operators, Floralia’s Independence Run will now commence Monday, March 21,” wrote the new bus company, which just recently began operations in December of 2021.

The Supreme Court application, filed by Barrow & Williams LLP, asserts that Floralia’s permit to transport passengers from Belize City to Punta Gorda (as well as Belize City to Dangriga) conflicts with the already existing runs being made by other bus lines. In speaking with local reporters, Minister of Transport Hon. Rodwell Williams stated, however, that whichever bus operator was doing the Independence runs over the last few months was doing so illegally, since the person who held the permit for it, Calbert Williams, passed away late last year and the permit for the run expired on December 31, 2021. Minister Ferguson refrained from commenting any further, since the court has not yet made a decision on the matter.

In recent months, many commuters have stated that while the quality of most buses on the road has been lacking, Floralia’s emergence has raised the bar for public transport standards. Hon. Rodwell Ferguson has stated that he welcomes that elevation, noting that in taking over the Ministry his main priority has always been upgrading and completely transforming Belize’s transport industry, something which he says he immediately communicated to all bus operators and which he hopes to accomplish by December 2022. This new upgrade would be timely, as rising fuel prices have sparked discussions around whether there will soon be an increase in bus fares, and, according to the Minister, most commuters would not be willing to pay more money for substandard services.

“If you look at the threads on Facebook, the commuters are saying that they want better buses on the highway, and we don’t mind paying the price if we get better transportation services across this country. So I believe that the commuter might erupt, and say ‘you di increase the price for me and then the buses are still old and inadequate’. So we hope that we can balance the act as we go along and figure out how quickly we can resolve it,” he said.

Previously, bus operators who belong to the Belize Bus Association were threatening to take industrial action after their requests for relief to counter the impact of steadily rising gas prices and other overhead expenses were reportedly ignored. After a successful meeting with the Government, the BBA called off their strike, and it was agreed that fuel prices and the potential increase in bus fares would be discussed in Cabinet this Monday. According to Minister Ferguson, during that meeting, he also spoke with the bus operators about the plan to upgrade the transport industry. A part of that upgrade, he said, might involve reducing the number of buses on the roads as, currently, there are far too many.

“Right now we’re doing an assessment—a whole transformation plan going on in the Ministry of Transportation…When we discussed with the bus operators a couple of days ago, I told them together we have to fix the industry and to be frank, too many buses are on the highway, and nobody’s making any money. So we have to figure out what is the best way forward to streamline this industry that we can see an improvement and likewise operators making money. So if somebody will have to go at the end of the day some will have to go. But that will be between ourselves and the bus operators,” he stated.

While he didn’t go into much detail, Hon. Ferguson also said that he has been negotiating with banks for all bus operators to be able to get loans to improve their services and bring in new buses in an effort to level the playing field and elevate the standards of the industry. Currently, many operators are unable to do so due to many of their road permits being short-term, thus preventing them from being approved for loans. Hon. Rodwell Ferguson also added that he supports anyone who wishes to improve transport services, stating, “If you invest and you bring in and you want to upgrade, then I’m with you.”