Bus drivers strike over route change

More than a dozen drivers on the 2 and 3 public bus routes in Grand Cayman parked up at the George Town bus depot on Wednesday morning as they went on strike over a route dispute.

The drivers said the Ministry of Tourism and Transport introduced a route change on Friday without informing them, and Public Transport Unit inspectors began enforcing it over the weekend.

“The number 2s and 3s were being stopped from entering George Town via Eastern Avenue,” one driver, who asked not to be named, told the Compass.

“98% of the passengers that we carry from West Bay disembark on Eastern Avenue or Shedden Road.

“We were being issued citations and warnings that if we get three citations we’d be suspended – so because of that we had to withdraw our services.”

He explained that without being able to travel through Eastern Avenue it “definitely would not make sense” and passengers who needed that route would have to be left in West Bay.

The driver of 18 years said that he had driven the route without a problem since 2007.

“Most of the people, they’re dependent on you at a certain time or they’ll miss their job,” he said.

‘Amicable’ result

After the morning protest, the drivers and operators took a phone call from Transport Minister Kenneth Bryan, Chief Officer Stran Bodden and Public Transport Unit officials.

The driver who spoke to the Compass said they were permitted to continue their route and he was happy with the result.

“It was really just about being able to drop the passengers off where they want to go,” he said.

“It’s unfortunate that people had to be inconvenienced today while we were not working but we had to do that to get it resolved.”

The Ministry of Tourism and Transport issued a statement which said that, following lengthy discussions, the matter was “amicably resolved” pending final approval from the Public Transport Board.

“It was further acknowledged and agreed upon, that moving forward there will be an increase in communication between the bus drivers and the Public Transport Unit.”

Bryan, who is in Barbados as Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, attended the meeting virtually.