The public transportation system in Kuching City is set to change when Stage Bus Service Transformation (SBST) Kuching is implemented at year end.
According to a report carried out by The Borneo Post, all the groundwork for the SBST project had been done with the network operator identified, bus routes verified, bus schedule and frequency determined, and contract agreements negotiated, leaving an agreement between bus operators and the Prime Minister’s Department left to start its implementation.
The SBST Kuching project which will be the handled by Konsortium BBK Sdn Bhd (KBBK), will ply 27,000km comprising 15 trunk routes and 12 feeder routes daily with 130 new buses.
KBBK is a consortium made up of four bus companies in Kuching City, and they intend to invest over RM100 million in the first 10 months after SBST had purchased the buses.
The newly-purchased bus would be equipped with state-of-the-art features such as on-board Wi-Fi, GPS with free mobile tracking apps available to the public, electronic ticketing machines, CCTV and logistic support facilities.
If found successful, SBST project will be expanded to Sibu, Bintulu and Miri in stages.
It was also reported that the government plans to also introduce Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in Kuching, to complement the SBST. BRT would see dedicated lanes for buses, and the project is currently in design stages of implementation.
