How could a government spend Rs35 billion on a project that is meant for people travelling on a single route?
ISLAMABAD: The Punjab government has announced plans for a metro bus service, which will connect Rawalpindi and Islamabad, enabling 150,000 passengers to travel daily using this service. The 23-km track is estimated to be built at a cost of Rs35 billion and will be completed in one year. My concern is based on two points.
Firstly, how could a government spend Rs35 billion on a project that is meant for people travelling on a single route, i.e., from Saddar, Rawalpindi, to the secretariat in Islamabad? Won’t the passengers travelling on other routes feel that they are being discriminated against?
Secondly, if the government wants to go ahead with the project, what would be its traffic plan? According to the authorities, Murree Road will be closed and the traffic diverted towards Airport Road and Kashmir Highway. This would result in chaos and mismanagement as Kashmir Highway is still incomplete and much work is left to be done to complete it. My suggestion to the authorities and the Punjab government is to complete work on the Kashmir Highway before launching the metro bus service to avoid inconveniencing the people of the twin cities in the hot summer season ahead.
Ahmar Haseeb
Published in The Express Tribune, March 8th, 2014.
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