FOR days, the travel agent repeatedly told us before we checked into our hotel: ‘6.30am, 7.30am and 8.30am. Don’t be late. The bus leaves at exactly 8.30am tomorrow.’
The first is the wake-up call and the second, breakfast time. This is an all-too-familiar reminder for those who travel in tour packages.
In our recent trip abroad, we literally lived out of suitcases. We changed hotels almost every day, leaving them early and checking in at 8pm after dinner. After a few hours of rest, we hit the road again the next morning for a day-long visit to predetermined locations.
For those above 50 years old, such a schedule can be quite demanding, as my husband and I discovered.
The travel agent literally pleaded with us to just follow the schedule, occasionally apologising by saying that the bus rides, toilet stops, including the distance the tour bus driver can cover each day, cannot be changed. And, that’s not the fault of the agent. Rather it’s due to the local rules and regulations.
It’s interesting to note that tour buses must stop every two hours at rest & recreational (R&R) points for toilet rest and for passengers to freshen up.
The tour manager, a Malaysian with more than 20 years of experience in handling European tours, said the bus engines must be switched off at such stops, and when cruising on the highways in summer, the air-conditioning system must be set at no more than 10° lower than the outside temperature. This applies to the hotels, too.
It’s not just about cost savings and technology propositions, but it’s about saving the environment, too.
We were told that tour bus drivers plying European cities are allowed only a certain number of hours on the road each day, depending on the routes. There were cases where the drivers had to stop at R&R points and wait for replacements because they had exceeded their driving hours.
These interesting rules reminded me of the recent call by National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (Niosh) chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye to the authorities to monitor accidents in the tourism industry.
He urged the government to create a special unit to compile statistics on accidents.
Lee said having accurate statistics would help the authorities make plans and take measures to prevent them. Niosh also urged tourism industry players to adopt the occupational safety and health concept to reduce the number of accidents and health problems.
Lee’s call comes at an opportune time. If we want more tourists to visit, we must acknowledge their contributions in terms of the tourist dollars spent by making sure they are safe in our country.
Safety is the main concern for travellers, and knowing that the journeys are safe will give them peace of mind.
Although there are issues that are difficult to anticipate, such as natural disasters and acts of extremism, the authorities can work on other areas to reduce the risk of accidents.
Having statistics alone will not help if measures are not taken to reduce the risks of tourism-related accidents. In the Malaysian context, most accidents involve tour buses rather than event-related activities.
I suppose we have plenty of information on all types of accidents, but what seems to be lacking is the follow-up action. Perhaps action has been taken but the public is not aware of it.
Important measures must be made known to the public and enforcement must be followed through.
For example, early this year, Taiwan ordered local tour agencies to suspend day-long bus tours from Taipei unless two drivers shared the driving duties. The directive followed the most serious tour bus crash in 30 years that killed 33 people and injured 11.
The island’s tourism bureau has also capped the distance that each driver can cover per day. On regular roads, a single driver cannot cover more than 300km per day, while those travelling over mountain ranges can cover no more than 200km per day.
So, this is what our tour agent meant. He was talking about our safety. The special unit proposed by Lee should also look into other aspects of tourism safety instead of focusing on obtaining data only. It should also look into safety plans.
The relevant agencies should work together in ensuring existing safety guidelines for travel agencies and tour operators are observed strictly. Only by doing so we could impose higher demands on safety requirements to different types of tours and excursions.
The task force must also focus on work procedures and contingency plans, not only on accident reporting. Safety plans should be part of the quality and safety system of every tour and travel company. It is also important to ensure that staff are trained in safety and well-equipped to handle incidents under a variety of situations.
I believe our local tour agencies have initiated their own safety plans to cover all aspects of the packages they are offering. It’s now for the authorities to benchmark them against international practices.
Wan Norliza Wan Mustapha is a former Associate Professor at the Language of Academy Studies, Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM), Shah Alam.