MONETABRIEF – Sri Lanka's bus services will be opened to the private sector within a year, Transport Minister Bimal Rathnayake has said, with the state fleet expected to be 272 by next year.

The state-run Lanka Metro Transit (Pvt) Ltd, uses low flow buses at a different price point to run scheduled service in an attempt create more predictable time table.

Due to excessive regulation, especially in tariffs, the existing bus services cannot evolve, analysts have said.

"We will anyway open the Metro bus service to the private sector within a year," Minister Rathnayake told reporters, after an incident where a private bus was alleged to have rammed a Metro Lanka bus.

It is not clear on what basis routes will be opened to the private sector. In Sri Lanka private buses are given individual licenses and there is erratic competition on the same routes with buses lingering at halts or overtaking each other on overlapping routes.

Usually, a single private operator is given a route, so that the bus in front and behind belong to the same company and revenue goes to the same operator when they operate on a fixed time table.

There is now competition through other forms of transport such as three wheelers.

In Sri Lanka there are no night bus fares and there is no night economy and people use higher cost three wheeler taxis.

Minister Rathnayake has told parliament that the Metro Lanka buses are not intended to compete with existing buses.

"We do not want to get anyone who is travelling in other buses to the Metro buses," he told parliament on September 08.

"What we want to do is to make a person who uses private transport to one who uses the bus.

"Every Metro bus halt should be a Park and Ride place."

The Metro bus fleet is made up of 122 buses this year, he said.

The Chinese government has promised to give 100 low-bed electric buses. Japan has given 8 buses as a gift. Procurement is underway for 50 buses which are expected to join the fleet early next year, he said

He called on private enterprises and state agencies to run parking services and earn some money in the process using vacant spaces.

"If anyone has a 30 perch land near a Metro Bus half we ask them to run a parking space," Minister Ratnayake said.

"Then people can park their car or bike, and get into a bus and go. We have some parameters, we will give them an app. Then they can earn some money also."

"I am also asking government offices to give their parking spaces from 500 pm to 800 pm or 0900 pm.

"Private banks also have parking spaces. But there are no customers after 500 pm. Shopping malls and supermarkets can also give parking space after their peak hours end.

"Charge some money for that." (Colombo/Oct11/2026)