39 out of 59 private buses in Fort failed the random smoke test

A special night operation has been carried out to inspect the roadworthiness and exhaust emissions of buses parked at the Bastian Mawatha Private Bus Stand in Colombo. During this sudden inspection, organized by the Vehicle Emission Program with the support of the National Transport Commission, 59 buses were inspected, and maintenance orders were issued for 39 of them.

This special operation was launched targeting buses that avoid such inspections by not operating during the daytime.

During this operation, several buses running on kerosene instead of diesel were identified by officials of the Vehicle Emission Program. Accordingly, authorities have taken steps to temporarily revoke the road permits of these buses. Concurrently, another special program to inspect the roadworthiness of buses operating in the Kilinochchi area was implemented by the Vehicle Emission Program on the afternoon of the 22nd.

The Vehicle Emission Program has decided to continuously conduct such special inspections weekly to identify buses that are not roadworthy, with the aim of ensuring passenger safety and protecting the environment. In the future, this inspection program is scheduled to be implemented island-wide weekly, in collaboration with the National Transport Commission and the Provincial Road Passenger Transport Authority.