I sympathise with Phil Aldridge, who wrote to these columns on April 16, complaining that bus routes 680 and 681 from Ma On Shan would no longer convey him directly to Central and that, henceforth, he would have to change vehicles.
Changing vehicles mid-journey is, of course, something which MTR users are accustomed to and happily accept.
Bus users, on the other hand, seem to expect that they should be able to get from point to point without changing buses.
Responding to competitive forces, bus companies have attempted to provide as many point to point services as possible, but this has resulted in massive over-provision of bus transport and serious congestion on major arteries. It is normal to see lines of buses passing through Central, each carrying only a few passengers. Over provision of buses is one of the major reasons that air pollution has become so bad.
A major rationalisation of bus routes is needed. The Transport Department should ensure that capacity on any road is approximately equal to the passenger demand on that road.
Passengers should not expect to be able to get a bus from anywhere to anywhere. Changing vehicles should be the norm and the route network should be designed to facilitate passenger interchange between routes.