COMMUTERS who depend on Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) buses to get to their various destinations in the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region are fuming over the lengthy waiting times to get on a bus, which some say will get worse with the resumption of face-to-face classes.

Some argued that the constant failure to address the long-standing problem is due to incompetence of the company’s management system, which admitted that a number of buses are down because of lack of spare parts.

Several impatient commuters were seen Tuesday when the Jamaica Observer visited the South Parade terminus in downtown Kingston, as well as the terminus at Greater Portmore and the one located in Spanish Town in St Catherine.

Hiding behind a light post to shelter from the sun, as she waited for a bus at the South Parade terminus, was 58-year-old Joy Forbes.

Forbes told the Observer that she had been waiting for more than several minutes to get a number 1, 17 or 18 bus to travel to Bayside in Portmore, St Catherine.

“Mi lef mi workplace fi deal wid some business fi go back. You know how long mi out yah suh? Mi a one old lady; mi nuh young and strong fi a stand up suh long with the sun hotter than hot. Wi shoulda have bus a line up fi people fi go bout dem business, man,” said Forbes, adding that she had waited over an hour for a bus on Sunday.

Forbes said she only uses JUTC buses to get around as she feels safer travelling on them than by taxis, which charge exorbitant fees.

“The taxi dem too unfair; they are not charging the right fare. Why should I pay $250 fi go the same route? Is $100 mi have. Mi affi stay within mi budget,” insisted Forbes.

Next to Forbes was a 21-year-old woman who only gave her name as Kayla. She said at least three buses had passed as she was waited for a bus to go to Portmore.

“Mi a wait a good while fi a number 17, 18 or 1, and all now. Every other bus come already,” she said.

Another commuter, who did not wish to be named, added, “It’s not so bad waiting on a bus today; I tek 32 or 30. But usually I would be waiting here for an hour until one comes.”

At the Spanish Town terminus there were a few commuters waiting for numbers 21, 22 and 23 buses.

One commuter, 54-year-old Jacob McFarlane, said he had been waiting almost 30 minutes for a number 23 bus.

“Sometimes wi out here fi all an hour and a half and cyaa get no bus. Sometimes you come and see bus just park up and wi a wait pon driver fi come, and it make yuh late. Dem all deh pon dem phone and sit down inna the bus. Nobody explains if a next bus coming,” he lamented.

As McFarlane spoke with the Observer, conductors working with Toyota Coaster buses shouted to commuters at the terminal.

At least two commuters who were waiting for JUTC buses boarded a Coaster bus.

“If this company was reliable to the customers, dem bus deh [Coaster] wouldn’t have nuh work fi get, memba mi tell yuh! Dem a tek weh the likkle customer dem because sometimes people in a line and sun a bun dem up fi long. And now school reopen, it a guh worse,” he said, noting that at midday the bus system is usually worse as commuters are told that drivers are changing shifts.

At the Greater Portmore bus terminus, the scene was no different. There were scores of people waiting, some of whom stood restlessly in the sun.

A 52-year-old woman, who gave her name only as Jennifer, said while she understands that there is a shortage of buses, an effective schedule could help to remedy the situation of long waiting times.

“I have been here from 12 pm and is now afta 1:00, and no bus. For the system to work effectively you have to have people who have basic customer service skills to run the business smoothly. Dem weh deh yah now nuh have a clue weh dem a do. They need training. Every problem has a solution,” she said.

Forty-four-year-old Richard Smith was among a few passengers who geared up for the approaching 20 route bus, when the driver made a sudden U-turn.

Disappointed, Smith who returned to a cool spot for shade, said: “That one lick mi. It’s like waiting on a date that never showed up.”

A thirty-one-year-old woman, who identified herself as Nurse Richards, said she was frustrated as she had been standing there for an hour.

“My foot hurting me, then I have to go to work and stand for another eight hours again. That’s unfair. I should have been in town already and whenever the bus comes, I know it is going to stop at every bus stop before it gets there,” she complained.

“I have my bus card so it’s cheaper than taking a taxi that charges about $300. I am very tired and it’s stressing. This has always been the case. It is not because of COVID-19 so they shouldn’t even use that as an excuse,” she said.

A 62-year-old woman who gave her name as Miss P added, “Mi know things aguh worse wid the pickney them a go back to school. Me out here for a good while now. All of last week me out here for an hour, not even one bus. Sometimes I go to the dispatchers and they will tell you that they have buses but no drivers. Sometimes you will see bus at the terminal long and dem drive pass the bus stop full a people. The bus system a get rotten, man.”

Asked about the shortage of buses, corporate communications manager at JUTC Cecil Thoms said, “That is in fact the case, and since we have come to that realisation we have tried to ramp up our maintenance programme to ensure that buses that have been down for one reason or the other are now back in operation.”

In fact, Thoms said about 300 buses have been restored to resume operations this year. He said some buses had different issues — including engine and tyre problems, and broken windshields — and some had been damaged in stone-throwing incidents.

He said those buses would have been deployed to all primary routes in Spanish Town, Rockfort and Portmore.

“We did a programme for additional buses but of course, the money has been reassigned for COVID-19 measures. It’s a very complicated circumstance that we have to be battling with. On one hand, it’s COVID-19 and on the other, it’s logistics problems, because sourcing parts from overseas is a big problem now. When you order stuff it takes almost forever because of the shipping lines, and our stuff have to come from Europe and, in some instances, China,” he said.

In 2020 the company said it had 557 buses, with 415 in service.