PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – Bringing mass transit to Phnom Penh’s clogged streets, City Hall expanded the city’s first three bus lines in September.
 
A fleet of 45 air conditioned buses imported from South Korea now ply the new lines. It is an attempt to cut congestion of cars, tuk-tuks, and motorbikes in a city that saw its population double in a decade, hitting  2 million today.
 
The three lines have a total of 184 marked stops, run north and south, and east and west. Line 3 runs from Night Market to the Airport. The fare is 1,500 riel ($0.37) paid to a conductor on board, for any distance. Free rides are offered to monks, passengers over 70, children up to 1 meter in height and students with valid identification.
 
Reflecting the city’s early to bed, early to rise rhythm, the buses run daily from 5:30 to 20:30.  Buses run at 15 minute intervals.  At peak hours – from 6 to 8, and from 17:00 to 18:00, buses run at 10 minute intervals.
 
Although City Hall advertised the new bus lines heavily on TV and social media, residents are slow to adopt the new service. When a Khmer Times reporter took a Line 2 bus on a weekday afternoon, only nine seats out of 35 were filled.
 
Bus employees say that Cambodian commuters and car drivers need to be educated about mass transit.
 
“Our service has a rule that if a citizen wants to take the bus, the passenger must stand at our bus stop,” a Line 2 driver said. “If you do not follow this, you will not be able to catch the bus, and we also cannot pick you up.”
 
Heng Srey Em, director of Line 3, has a request for motorists in the city.
 
“Do not park in our bus stops,” she said. “It’s a big bother for us, and also a big part of traffic congestion.” 
 
With city emergency wards filling daily with traffic accident victims, she  praised buses as a safe way to travel
“Travel by buses is not as dangerous as taxis or moto dops, and it is also the way to travel cheaper,” she said, noting that each line stretches for about 12 kilometers.
 
Praise for the new service came from an elderly woman, who was traveling for free on Line 2, from Night Market to Takhmao City in Kandal province.
 
“I feel very happy, excited about this new service,” she said. “It is saving citizens’ money. It’s easy, safe, clean and comfortable. It should reduce traffic congestion and decrease accidents.”
 
City Hall hopes to add up to 18 new bus lines over the next decade.