This post is a companion article to our main post:
Brunei-Muara Metro Service: A Proposal.

The topic of public transport has been discussed often in Brunei. Specifically, it tends to veer towards the usage of cars as the main method of transport in Brunei, as well as the high ratio of car ownership.

Without getting into specifics, car usage is a concern to Brunei due to: effects to the environment, energy use, traffic conditions, spending habits of Bruneians, investment on road infrastructure and road safety, and among others issues. The Government is aware of the challenges [1].

A few years ago, the opinions on the use of public transport were varied [2][3]. But it seems that, slowly, the country is moving towards seriously addressing this issue. For example, in 2011, RIPAS Hospital introduced free shuttle buses, allowing hospital visitors to travel between the hospital and the parking lot of the Jame’ ‘Asr mosque [4].

Even more recently in 2012, CSPS carried out a transport survey in October, with the aim to formulate a transport masterplan [5][6]. In December, the Tutong Youth Club held a race that included the use of public buses to get from place to place [7].

In terms of a Light Rail Transit (LRT) or a Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), the possibility has been deemed to be “not feasible” or sustainable [1]. It has been considered in the BSB Masterplan [8], with the public weighing in on the matter in letters to newspapers [9].

As mentioned in our post for the Brunei-Muara Metro Service idea, we did not intend to address the feasibility or cost-effectiveness of actually implementing such a system in Brunei. This doesn’t mean it is above consideration, even in a hypothetical situation. If these were to be effectively addressed by anyone else who wants to expand on our idea of creating the routes, we’d love to hear from you. 🙂

 

References (which are heavily biased towards a single news source, we know):

  1. Low, Leng May. “Revision of public transportation system needed“, The Brunei Times, 30 Nov 2011. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  2. Bahrum, Junaidi. “Car-driven Bruneians loathe public transport“, The Brunei Times, 20 Dec 2008. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  3. Masli, Ubaidillah. “MRT network can ease Brunei traffic woes“, The Brunei Times, 21 Jul 2008. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  4. Roslan, Hana. “New Women and Children block for Ripas Hospital“, The Brunei Times, 3 Apr 2011. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  1. Noor, Amir. “CSPS holds 3-day transport survey“, The Brunei Times, 9 Oct 2012. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  2. Kasim, Leo. “Survey to draft transport masterplan“, The Brunei Times, 2 Oct 2012. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  3. Alwines, Aaron. “Race to raise public transport profile“, The Brunei Times, 22 Dec 2012. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  4. Shahminan, Fitri. “From Yayasan to airport by light rail transit“, The Brunei Times, 20 May 2010. Date accessed Dec 2012.
  5. Light Rail Transport: new white elephant?“, Letter to the Editor, The Brunei Times, 25 Aug 2010. Date accessed Dec 2012.

Categories: Society