Public transport: ‘Halt construction, start debate on Orange Line’

NCA professors say mass transit project will be an economic burden on the people

LAHORE:

Several speakers at Lahore Metro Aur Aap seminar on Wednesday demanded that a public debate be allowed on the Orange Line Metro Train. They asked that the government immediately stop construction work on the project till all aspects of the project had been discussed in such a debate.

They said that alongside the damage caused to cultural and historical sites along the route, the project would cause security situation in the city to be compromised.

Alongside members of the Lahore Conservation Society (LCS), speakers included academics.

National College of Arts (NCA) associate professors Marrium Hussain and Atiq Ahmad said that the metro train would be an economic burden on the people of the Punjab. They said the government would need to pay a subsidy of Rs150 per trip for each passenger to keep the train operational.

They said that rather than solving the transport problems of the city, the project would lead to new challenges.

Referring to the Lahore Metro Bus service, they said the decision to raise its track above ground level in several segments had jeopardised the security of buildings in the vicinity of the track. These included public buildings like the Government College University, the Punjab Civil Secretariat, session courts and the Data Darbar, they said.

Ahmad said that the Asian Development Bank had earlier offered a soft loan for the project at a quarter per cent (0.25 per cent) interest rate but the offer was not accepted by the then government in the province.

The loan agreement secured for the project by the current government was at three per cent interest rate, he said.

Other speakers said that in implementing the project the government was violating several national and international laws and constitutionally-protected fundamental rights.

They claimed that the government was not making public important details about the project. They said a large number of households were being displaced to make way for the track. Several lives had already been lost in the construction of the track, they added. The speakers also highlighted the project’s adverse environmental impact on the city.

They said that everyone was in agreement that the city needed a viable public transport system. However, any decision on it should be taken in accordance with the wishes of the people, they said.

FCCU professor Dr Saeed Shafqat and Dr Imdad Hussain also spoke at the occasion.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 28^th,  2016.