Frustrated metro passengers get another “patience” call
Panama’s much vaunted , and delayed, new Metro bus system got off to a slow start on Tuesday (December 28) and once again passengers were told to have patience.
Hundreds of passengers waited in the early morning for the new buses that didn’t show, and they didn’t know that they had to have $1.25 in hand when they boarded on buses bound for the South Corridor. At many stops there was confusion.
Once again citizens were asked to “have patience” when they discovered that the 24-hour service had not started and that only selected routes were being serviced.
This time the “patience” call came from Minister of the Presidency, Jimmy Papadimitriu, who travles to work in a chauffer driven vehicle.
Papadimitriu said that at 12:01 a.m. “several buses” began operations to San Pedro, Concepción, Pedregal and Don Bosco.
He acknowledged, that after the fanfare announcing the system, this morning there are still many "to do" things in the public transport system. "We still have to construct stops, " and we need to start the system in the northern corridor.
He reiterated the call for patience and maid a fresh prediction that the system will be completely changed in August 2011. Passengers waiting in the rain for a bus to Pacora were not betting on it.
While the city is used to seeing mechanical breakdowns of diablos rojos, it was not expected that one of the shiny new vehicles would have mechanical problems in front of the Childrfen’s hospital on Avenida Balboa.
In the Plaza Cinco de Mayo transit authority inspectors had to be called to restore order when Metro buses blocked the approach of diablos rojos endeavoring tp pick up passengers from the sidewalk, so they resorted to old practices of picking them up on the roadway,
On some buses passengers protested at paying an extra 25 cents to stand when previously they had seats.
In some sectors the metros stopped only at designated stops, but on Avenida Balboa, they stopped wherever passengers were seen standing “patiently”
