An efficient public transport system

I am very annoyed to have read an e-mail here in Australia being floated by a sector of Maltese people regarding the "rudeness and arrogance" of the Maltese public transport system.

Since Malta is my birth place I would like to make my contribution in an attempt to help rectify the problem by referring to the very good Australian public transport system.

Each of the Australian states' public transport system is controlled by an authority that reports to the Minister of Transport. All private- and government-owned public transport operators must have a licence and pay an annual fee to fund the authority. The authority has a code of practice that covers everything from operator uniform, the condition of vehicles (including hygiene), transport charges and bus routes to ensure that all people get the same transport service throughout.

The authority has inspectors that can temporarily suspend licences "on the spot" for breach of the transport code. Operators who consistently breach the code lose their licence indefinitely.

Sure, the cost of the authority is passed on to the public but the public would be much better off cost-wise and otherwise if the Maltese transport system were to be properly controlled and regulated.

Most importantly, it would lift the image of the Maltese tourist industry because there is nothing worse then a tourist being hassled and ripped off by a tourist operator minutes after entering a country, as happened to me when I visited Malta in 1978. Sadly, it seems very little, if anything, has changed since then.

I suggest that the Maltese people tell their politicians that if they do not do something about what seems to be a major problem in the Maltese public transport system, then they will not vote for them next election.