DSAT attempts to mitigate impact of Golden Bus service cuts

The Transport Bureau (DSAT) has said that it is working with the operator of Golden Bus to minimize the inconvenience caused by the sudden reduction of its evening services.

Golden Bus is the colloquial name given to the public shuttle running between Macau and Hong Kong, as well as between Hong Kong and Zhuhai.

The service reduction, according to various sources, was instructed or ordered by the government, to which it has relented. The hasty decision has left many – among whom a Macau tea entrepreneur – helpless on the road to return home.

DSAT’s coordination may have come a little late because, according to Justin Ng, the Japanese tea ritual professional and entrepreneur, his inquiry regarding the service was swung like a tennis ball between the government and the operator of the bus.

He says his initial inquiry – made right after he was told that his bus booking was cancelled – resulted in the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) deferring its responsibilities, the Health Bureau (SSM) pledging to give a reply when it becomes available, as well as the Golden Bus operator claiming that no instruction on compensational services had been received.

As of press time, Ng has already returned to Macau after eventually being transferred to another time slot.

His return infuriated a multitude of Facebook users on public broadcaster TDM’s page, under the video depicting his story. The social media users blamed him for taking advantage of his status. In fact, Ng started his business in Macau but did not get the same appreciation as he does in Hong Kong.

Similar social media reactions – especially those blaming returnees for bringing the Covid-19 virus in – have occurred almost every time returnees have tested positive in Macau. AL