Today in Belmopan, the Ministry of Transport held a press conference to provide an update on consolidating the national public transport system under the National Bus Company.
On Friday, two pieces of legislation were passed to accommodate this. The Public Transportation Investment Bill provides the NBC with fiscal incentives for its first five years, including exemptions from certain taxes and import duties, while the accompanying legislation establishes exclusive and limited concessions along the Southern and Western Corridors to prevent competing road service permits from undermining the company's investment.
Today, the Minister explained that while making this decision, they had to reflect on the errors made during the Novelo era:
Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transport
"One of the ways to see the need and the value of the bill and the two motions is to look back at the consolidation starting in 2002 that led to the Novelo family owning the one consolidated company plus James Bus Line. There was no legal framework created to protect that arrangement. And what happened after that is road service permits continued to be issued out by some of the same people who sold to the consolidation, undermining the company, and that led to two in 2004, to 31 in 2005. So what... we have learned a lesson from that, and it is that we must have legislation in place that will give assurances over a period of time for the investments that need to go in. The Belizean people's investment is going in there, right, with the $20-plus million for buses, etc. That's representing the people's investment. And then the operators' investment, $19.2 or so million, that's significant investment. So we don't want that come two months later, we have other people getting road service, or two years later, or next term. So that's what the two motions were with the limited and the exclusive concessions for the Southern Corridor and the Western Corridor."
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