DRIVERS will not be in charge of limiting crowds on public transport, Transdev has told commuters ahead of a projected spike in bus passengers in the coming weeks.
Since COVID-19 restrictions were put in place, Transdev Queensland has seen passenger numbers plummet by 80 per cent, compared to the same time last year.
But with students returning to school by May 25 and people expected to start heading back to work, patronage is expected to climb in the coming weeks.
The company - which operates out of its Capalaba depot - has ramped up cleaning and introduced extra safety measures, like cordoned off seating and rear door loading, to help make bus travel safer for passengers and drivers.
Head of business operations Mark McKenzie said daily cleaning of buses was being conducted.
Drivers had also been provided with special cleaning kits to wipe down surfaces during their shift.
"Our top priority is always the safety of our passengers and drivers," Mr McKenzie said.
He said implementing social distancing on public transport was difficult, especially during peak services.
"It's not up to the driver to adjudicate numbers on the vehicles," he said.
"People need to make their own decisions about whether they're getting on a bus depending on the number of people.
"Out of COVID restrictions we're going to see a climb back to normal patronage and that's going to mean we go back to normal peak loads.
"There's no availability of extra vehicles so people just need to make their own decisions."
Passengers were encouraged to practise good hygiene, maintain social distance where they could, stay home if they were feeling unwell and use their go card to pay for fares.
Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said the state government was helping Transdev meet the costs of extra cleaning.
Capalaba MP Don Brown thanked commuters for following health advice and only travelling when necessary.
"Vehicles and stations - including touch points like hand rails and push-buttons - have been sanitised on an increased basis to further minimise the risk of infection," Mr Brown said.
"The vast majority of people have been doing the right thing and have been very patient with regards to how they're social distancing on public transport.
"It's been good now that we've got the Roadmap so we know where we're headed."
