CAN SPAD DELIVER

The much-awaited Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) is now a reality.

Although it was supposed to be given its full powers by September last year, that deadline has been pushed to now, at the earliest. Reason: one necessary amendment to existing laws did not get passed in time for reasons beyond the control of SPAD.

This is a worrying development. So while SPAD exists in form, it still doesn’t have the teeth to make the positive changes to the sorry state of the country’s public transport system.

There is a lot at stake because SPAD is an idea whose time has come. It parks into one “central garage” the current illogical way that public transport is managed and administered in Malaysia with the Commercial Vehicles Licensing Board at one end, the Road Transport Department at the other, while bodies like the Tourism Ministry, which issues licences for tourist buses, still having a piece of the pie.


SPAD is tasked with revamping the entire public transport system and given the mandate to take over all licence-issuing authorities, reorganise the bus network in the Klang Valley, integrate smart ticketing and monitor the overall standard performance of all public transport services, to name a few functions.

Perhaps this is why speculation is rife that SPAD’s recent hiccup (of not having the sufficient legislative backing) is coming from entrenched parties who have learned to somehow profit from the mayhem of the country’s public transport “mis-administration”.

While this theory is unsubstantiated (it could be only a legal technicality that has prevented SPAD from getting all its powers), certainly SPAD’s role could have an impact on the current status quo of the public transport sector.

For one, SPAD would seek to bring about efficiencies in the running of public transport. This could work against the interests of the entrenched players who exist more so because of the licence or monopoly they have rather than for being efficient in what they do.

At the same time, SPAD is facing expectation problems from the public, simply because there is so much pent-up demand for better public transport which went unheeded by an unresponsive, disjointed system which is now being re-directed (with hope) at SPAD.

In fact, public complaints to SPAD show many are hopeful that SPAD will be able to “right the wrongs” of Malaysia’s public transport system.

For serious commercial transport players, SPAD offers hope that they too have a significant role in the country’s public transport, instead of the usual suspects.

SPAD also gives hope to the “small players” in the public transport system, such as taxi drivers, who have often complained that they are subjected to unfair treatment by licence holders.

No doubt, SPAD is a step in the right direction, with regard to regulation and planning and management of public transport in Malaysia. It was earlier said that SPAD’s biggest challenge is being able to perform its duties without fear or favour, especially in enforcing its findings and plans on the myriad of other stakeholders in the public transport system in Malaysia.

Now it seems it has an even bigger challenge, that of being given its full legislative powers to get started. So can SPAD deliver ??