Road permits: Cabbies take to the streets

PESHAWAR: Cab drivers protested against the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government for not issuing road permits to them and cancelling the ones that were issued from 2005 to 2012. Not only are the permits delayed but authorities also overcharge drivers for the documentation, said the cab drivers during the protest outside Peshawar Press Club on Tuesday. They said Regional Transport Authority charges Rs3,000 instead of Rs700 to renew a permit whereas some officials of the transport department take Rs0.1million instead of Rs23,000 to issue new permits. The protesters said K-P Transport Director Manzoor Ahmad is biased as he plays favourites and delays the process for others. A large number of taxi drivers gathered outside the press club at around 7am and continued to protest till 1pm. They said the K-P government is withholding and cancelling permits because they have decided to start a metro bus service in Peshawar to replace other means of public transport such as taxis of 1989-94 model.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 18^th, 2015.