HSBC is a Chinese bank.

[Daphne – It is not.]

Thanks, Gahan, for making it technical.

Indeed. And yet Arriva’s financial statements could probably only be read one way.

If a given number of passengers, at a given price for a given number of routes already indicates as of year one that the original capital expenditure plus other fixed and ongoing variable costs, cannot be sufficiently covered to the point of at least break-even within a predetermined minimum number of years, thus guaranteeing a return on the capital employed that is commercially acceptable, and without the need of significantly increased subsidies in future years to balance the books, then something is significantly wrong with Arriva’s economic model.

Given the possibility of certain indicators, as well as the inelasticity of demand for a service, that is vital to any modern day country, and which therefore requires not only undue government involvement, but also a need to fit this service within certain social parameters (price and delivery), it may be no wonder that the Tumas Group would have backed out if its investment. Public transport can never be a fully viable commercial set up in the full sense of the word.

All that said, the possibility of insider information as to what is probably about to unfold, cannot be discounted.

Some common sense is needed here :

What are the best chances for a bus/car to heat up and perhaps,maybe catch fire?

When it is fully loaded going uphill at around noon in the summer heat, is the answer.

When did the bendy bus catch alight? At night, going downhill and empty of passengers.

Loose fuel line connections on the return line won’t stop a diesel engine, but can cover an engine with diesel.

No, it was another large company called Transdev.

http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2010-08-01/news/arriva-consortium-selected-for-new-bus-service-278175/

If you read the article and think about what we had and what we probably will get as a replacement when Plan B is rolled out…

With apologies to your readers, but I am now starting to get really annoyed about the nincompoops in government and those in Opposition.

Are all the Maltese ‘journalists’ cowards? If this goes on, any other issues will be dealt with in the same manner by the PL government who knows that no so-called journalists will deign to carry out an investigative story on the issue of the bus transport system, and on other issues for that matter.