Newsroom
Cyprus is bringing in specialists from abroad to examine the entire public bus fleet, Transport Minister Alexis Vafeadis said Monday, after a series of checks uncovered maintenance lapses.
Vafeadis said the government wants an independent, outside assessment. He noted that while not every bus is suspected of having a problem, the fact that 14 of them showed issues was enough reason to expand the inspection to all vehicles.
He also addressed comments made by a Greek specialist who recently suggested poor maintenance may be linked to buses that caught fire. The minister said public-transport contractors are required to service their vehicles according to manufacturer guidelines, and the expert’s review indicated that this standard wasn’t met in the buses examined so far.
The specific model under scrutiny numbers around 65 buses island-wide. Authorities have already checked 14, and all were found with some form of maintenance deficiency.
Vafeadis added that the responsibility for proper upkeep ultimately lies with the vehicle owners, but given the concerns, the state is taking additional precautions by bringing in foreign inspectors.
The wider safety review will begin once the international team arrives, with officials aiming to determine whether the problem is confined to one batch of buses or part of a broader pattern.
