Good morning everyone and thank you for coming,

We are here today to announce March 18 as the effective date for the Department of Public Transportation’s new bus schedule; and to sign the Memoranda of Understanding between Government and the Bermuda Industrial Union for the Temporary Fifty Bus Schedule and the Rostered Night Work for Bus Operators.

Before proceeding any further, I must recognize the collaborative efforts of the DPT and the BIU that allows us to come before you now. Mr. Michael DeLeon, Assistant Operations Manager, was instrumental in the development of the new schedule and Mr. Brant Harvey, Driver Trainer, led the Perusal Committee responsible for the final iteration of the rosters. They were supported by a great team and I thank everyone for their efforts.  

I would also like to give special thanks to the Department of Public Transportation Director, Mr. Roger Todd and the President of the BIU, Mr. Chris Furbert, whose efforts have been invaluable in achieving our objectives. I thank you both for strengthening the relationships between the DPT and the BIU as we worked towards formalizing the new 2019 bus schedule and night work agreements.

I am inspired by the commitment shown by all and thank everyone for their collaboration, hard work, and open communication that allowed us to devise solutions that benefit bus operators, the Bermuda public, and can be sustained with our current fleet of buses.

I will now invite Mr. Todd to provide more details on the agreements. 

Thank you.

R. Todd Comments

Thank you Minister and good morning everyone.

The Department of Public Transportation is pleased to advise that the new 2019 bus schedule will commence operation on Monday, March 18.

A point of clarification: The public bus schedule will be the same all year round, except that, for the purpose of organizing the bus operators’ work shifts, the Winter bus schedule includes school runs and the Summer bus schedule does not.

The new schedule can be viewed and printed on the official government website. (www.gov.bm/bus) Hard copies of the bus schedule are also available from the various fare media outlets.

Over the next eighteen months DPT will monitor the performance of the new schedule and make adjustments, where appropriate, to deliver a dependable, quality public bus service.

The MOU for the temporary fifty-bus schedule speaks to our commitment to continued collaboration as we replenish the aging bus fleet. The agreement provides for regular review of the new bus schedule, work rosters and bus purchases.

The second MOU defines Night Work for Bus Operators and will provide clarity for the development of future work rosters.

The introduction of the new fifty-bus schedule will greatly assist with eliminating the daily cancellations that has plagued the bus service in recent years. As additional buses comes online, through new purchases and out of service repairs, we will expand the service on those routes with the greatest demand.

The Department of Public Transportation is committed to delivering a quality public bus service. I would like to express my appreciation for the hard working team at the DPT, and to the Bermuda Industrial Union and Bermuda Public Service Union for their collaborative support. Working together we will deliver valued improvements to the public bus service.

I will now invite Mr. Furbert to provide comments on behalf of the Bermuda Industrial Union.

Thank you.