Sri Lanka Metro Bus services will expand to Jaffna and Kandy as the government adds new vehicles and targets a 500-bus fleet by 2030.
The Sri Lanka Metro Bus service is set to expand to Jaffna and Kandy before the end of this year, Transport Minister Bimal Ratnayake has announced.
The government plans to introduce a new fleet within the coming weeks. Officials expect the move to help improve and regularise public transport services across the country.
“We have already acquired 121 Metro buses from China and several other countries. Legal procedures, including registration, are currently underway before deploying them for service. After completing the relevant documentation, we expect to deploy these buses for public service by the end of August,” the minister said.
Ratnayake also said officials had identified several new routes for the service. The government will announce further details about those routes in the coming days.
The administration plans to expand the Sri Lanka Metro Bus network beyond Colombo. It also expects to obtain another 50 Metro buses from Japan before the end of this year.
“We hope to commence the Metro Bus service in the Jaffna and Kandy areas as well by the end of this year. Metro depots will also be established in both of those districts,” Ratnayake said.
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Government Sets Long-Term Public Transport Goals
The minister said the government’s long-term objective is to encourage more passengers to move from private vehicles to public transport.
Officials believe this shift could reduce traffic congestion, fuel consumption and environmental pollution.
Ratnayake also said passenger information inside Metro buses would appear in Sinhala, Tamil and English.
Meanwhile, the government aims to increase the Sri Lanka Metro Bus fleet to more than 500 vehicles by 2030.
The expansion to Jaffna and Kandy will therefore become an important test of whether the government can deliver a more reliable and accessible national public transport network.
