History of Sri Lanka Transport Board
The history of Sri Lanka Transport Board, the state-run, primary bus operator in Sri Lanka, goes back to 1 January 1958. The state-owned enterprise was at the time known as the Ceylon Transport Board. At its peak, it was the largest omnibus company in the world - with about 7,000 buses and over 50,000 employees. With privatization in 1979, it underwent a period of decline. First broken up into several regional boards, then into several companies, it was finally reconstituted as the Sri Lanka Transport Board in 2005. Origins The first motor omnibus in Sri Lanka was imported in 1907, and bus transport began in Sri Lanka as an owner-operated service. There was no regulation, so when more than one bus operated on a single route there was a scramble for the load, which might end in fisticuffs or even stabbings. By the mid-1930s, malpractices in pursuit of maximum profit began to compromise safety and comfort. The setting up of the limited liability omnibus companies by the British around 1940 was the first meaningful step in regularising public passenger transport in the country. Controlling legislation was strengthened in 1951 with the introduction of a system of quantity and quality licensing, similar to what then applied in Great Britain. Nevertheless, conditions again deteriorated. The earliest buses plied on the main routes only and had open bodies. Passengers got in from both sides of the bus and through a door at the back. The openings were covered with buttoned down leather cloth which could be rolled up when necessary. The Nelson Commission appointed by the British government to look into shortcomings in bus transport in Sri Lanka recommended replacing open body buses with closed body buses, which came to be known as 'Nelson body' buses. The limited liability omnibus companies that came into existence were the Silverline Bus Company owned by B. J. Fernando, the South Western Bus Company (Sir Cyril de Zoysa), Wijaya Bus Company (Mudaliyar David Mendis of Negombo), the Ebert Silva Bus Company (Ebert Silva), Sri Lanka Omnibus Company (Jayasena Mudalali), Panadura Bus Company (Sir Leo Fernando), K. B. L. Perera and Sons of Hendala, Siri Medura Bus Company (Singho Mahattaya of Attanagalla) and so on. The owners were in overall charge of operations, and the companies ran the services on their own whims and fancies; the companies shared routes among themselves. It was therefore difficult for the commuters to travel to distant places without breaking journey at one or two destinations. There were no time schedules or night time services. Buses packed to capacity were driven at a terrific speed, even on bends on the steep roads of the Hatton-Adam's Peak route. Only the South Western Bus Company was run on modern lines. These companies employed the minimum number of staff: support staff was almost non-existent. Unionisation by N. M. Perera's All Ceylon United Motor Workers' Union had to proceed in secret, with union agents disguising themselves to avoid company thugs. At the time, all the buses ran