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Opposition Spokesman on Transport Mikael Phillips is warning Jamaicans not to be deceived by the latest announcements from the Government regarding new long-haul and city-to-city services under the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC).

""Instead of fixing what's broken and restoring abandoned KMTR routes, where the need is greatest, the Government is parading a few new buses around as if it's an achievement," Phillips said.

"This is not leadership; it is election-year theatrics," he added.

At a high-profile handover ceremony in Portmore, St Catherine, on Wednesday, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness and Transport Minister Daryl Vaz unveiled 93 new JUTC buses -- part of a broader plan to provide 300 new units over three years. The first 100 buses were delivered last July.

Vaz revealed that 15 of the newly delivered units will be dedicated to a soon-to-be-established long-haul service. Under this service, commuters will be able to travel directly from Half-Way Tree in St Andrew to Montego Bay, Negril, Port Antonio, and Mandeville with minimal stops, courtesy of a new rural express service. The service will offer premium travel at an introductory fare of $2,000.

In his address, Holness highlighted the broader benefits of the investment, citing improved convenience for commuters and economic efficiency.

"The investment in new buses and in trying to create a world-class transportation system ... is about setting the framework for growth for everyone. It's about making our economy more efficient, so that everyone who has to use public transportation can be more productive in their personal or work endeavours," he said.

The prime minister noted that Jamaica's economic stability allowed the Government to make the $2.35-billion investment in public transport.

"We have achieved economic stability through good fiscal management and through institutional strengthening and development. The investments that we are making in public transportation are designed to improve the comfort and convenience of the travelling public; they are designed to improve the affordability," he pointed out.

But Phillips isn't impressed. He argues that no amount of ribbon-cutting can distract from the steady collapse of the JUTC under the current administration.

He reminded the public that the JUTC was established in 1998 to provide modern, safe, and reliable stage carriage services under an exclusive licence in the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region (KMTR). However, he said, the company's performance has sharply deteriorated under the current Government.

"Since 2016, they've run the JUTC into the ground. Ridership has plummeted from 63 million to just 18 million. Student ridership -- once at 100,000 per day -- is now barely 5,500. And they've let the fleet rot, down from 450 serviceable buses to just 170," he said.

According to Phillips, rather than fixing routes that have been abandoned across the KMTR, the Government is staging media events and launching new services to score political points ahead of the upcoming elections.