Air-Conditioned Inter-city Buses

We decided to escape the unbearable heat of Colombo and visit Nuwara Eliya during the long Wesak weekend. So Saturday afternoon saw my Dad, Sis and I at the Pettah inter-city bus stand in a queue waiting for the bus. The scorching sun made us even more impatient to leave, though we had a long, long wait for the bus. The first bus left overloaded. We were the first in line for the next bus which was a Rosa air conditioned bus, all rigged out in dark red velvet curtains and tinted glasses. Having found seats in the little bus, we settled down. The conductor waited until take off and casually called out that the air-conditioner was weak and that no one was to grumble on the way. He also wanted five people to be seated in each row (including the middle ‘jump-seat) which normally accommodates four! He fortunately asked those not comfortable with the situation to get off the bus. I’ll bet he was chagrined when we took him at his word and promptly got off the bus which was already suffocatingly hot with all the sealed windows and the ac off. I guess most people just want to get on the way and not waste valuable hours in queues and would put up with all the discomfort it entails.

We waited in the burning sun which spilled into the bus stand for another while. There was this gang of boys all going to Nuwara Eliya as well, they soon made friends with my dad and in the almost forgotten chivalry carried our bags on board the next bus.

This inter-city semi-luxury bus left Colombo at 2.15 p.m. and once out of city limits stopped at almost every bus halt picking up standing passengers until the bus was labouring at walking pace. People who were seated, were uncomfortably crunched up, with other passengers hanging over them, leaning into them, elbows knocking their heads every little while.

The driver spent quite a lot of his time on the mobile phone and driving at snails-pace, while the radio or cassette player belted out music at top volume. Protests didn’t even reach the driver, whose one ear was occupied with the phone and the other tuned into the radio. We finally reached our destination at 11.30 in the night! It took us 9.5 hours to get to Nuwara Eliya. Unbelievable!

This is our bus ‘service’. Our people by nature are so passive that they don’t even grumble; they just bear up. One person said that he was scared he may be asked to get off the bus if he so much as uttered a word. And I can well believe it too. Even if one person raised his voice in protest, it would be a lone voice with no support from all the other passengers who pretend they are mentally (retarded?) not present in the situation.

We were lucky once we got off the bus to feel the cool climes reach out and enfold us in its misty embrace soothing our travel weary souls. A trishaw quickly carried us to our destination on Unique View. We promptly had bathes…. and freezing cold water bathes at that, to wash away the grime of travel and tumbled into bed. What a journey!