PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government claimed to have completed feasibility for launching Rs14 billion rapid bus service in the provincial metropolis, to be run on 25-km-long rout from Chamkani to Hayatabad Industrial Estate.
According to the plan, the bus from starting point will reach its final destination only in 60 minutes.
Initially, route of the bus was consisted of only 13 stations but now 21 stops have also been included in it. The project, to be completed at a cost of Rs14 billion in 14 to 16 months, will provide better transport facility to about 0.1 million people on daily basis.
According to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Board of Investment and Trade (KP BoIT) vice chairman Mohsin Aziz, the rapid bus service project aims at providing better communication means to citizens of Peshawar.
Mr Aziz said that the project was the best example of public-private partnership, involving no subsidy or incentives for the operators. The commuters would be charged only Rs30 to Rs40, he said, adding that initially 52 buses would be run on the route.
The BoIT vice chairman said that the project would be completed in 14 to 16 months while width of the dual carriageway for the bus service would be 24 feet and each station would be 32 feet wide.
The KP BOIT vice chief claimed that the ministries of railways and defence had raised no objection on the project
He said that feasibility of the project was prepared in such a technical manner that no one had so far objected to it. He expressed astonishment over some media reports according to which the ministries of railways and defence had raised objections about the project. Such baseless news items, he said, could only create confusion about the mega public welfare project.
The BoIT vice chairman said that neither the ministry of railways nor the ministry of defence had raised any objection about the project. The impression was created by some vested interest elements, especially encroachment mafia, he added. “Besides, Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has not only appreciated the project but also supported it and extended full cooperation in this regard,” Mr Aziz said.
