Major work on Peshawar BRT to be done at night: K-P CM

CM Mahmood imposes ban on use of plastic bags

PESHAWAR: In a bid to ease traffic pressures in the provincial capital, the chief minister has directed that most of the work on the mass transit project in the city will now take place at night.

This was directed by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan during a meeting on the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project being built in Peshawar. During the meeting, the CM was given updates on the project and the pace of construction. The meeting was also briefed about other small projects associated with BRT.

Mahmood expressed concerns over the worsening traffic situation in Peshawar owing to the under construction project.

However, he insisted that the provincial government will not compromise on the deadlines set for completing construction of the project.

No further delay or any sort of excuse will be accepted in this respect, he told project managers.

In this regards, he directed the project officials that immediate steps must be taken to resolve the traffic congestion in the city. He added that the flow of traffic in Peshawar should not be affected by construction work.

For this purpose, CM Mahmood said that both sides of the BRT corridor must be cleared for traffic and wherever possible, all types of hurdles placed on the roads around the project should be removed.

As part of measures to ease traffic issues during the day, the chief minister directed that most of the construction work on the BRT project should now be carried out at night.

“The pace of work on overall traffic management of Peshawar city would be further accelerated,” he added.

The meeting was attended by Additional Chief Secretary Shehzad Bangash, Peshawar Commissioner Amjad Ali, Planning and Development Department Secretary Shahab Ali Shah, Transport Secretary Kamran Khan, Peshawar Development Authority (PDA) director general, Peshawar Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Qazi Jamil and others.

Plastic bags banned

Meanwhile, the provincial government has moved to ban the use of plastic (Polythene) shopping bags in the province as part of measures to protect the environment.

This was decided in a meeting on banning plastic bags in the province and deliberating over alternative solutions.

Mahmood said that the pollution caused by polythene bags was a global issue. However, in Pakistan and especially in K-P, this issue was quite severe since it was impacting the agriculture sector, irrigation, sewerage system and also drinking water supply systems.

As part of the federal government’s Clean and Green Pakistan, the CM said that they will work to eradicate pollution created by polythene bags.

In its stead, steps will be taken to provide the public with an alternate solution, including the use of biodegradable bags which will not only clean the environment but will also protect the public from diseases.

In this regard, Mahmood constituted a committee. This body will be headed by K-P Information Minister Shokat Yousafzai and include Peshawar Commissioner, Peshawar CCPO and representatives of the Waste and Sanitation Services Peshawar (WSSP), members of the business community and the provincial environment department.

The terms of reference (TORs) of the committee will be finalised soon and a report in this regard has been directed to be submitted within ten days.

Mahmood has also underlined the need for launching a comprehensive campaign through various media platforms and outlets to create awareness amongst the public about the harmful impacts of polythene bags.

He further directed the committee to should sit with the business community and other relevant stakeholders so as to ensure action against the use of polythene bags.

The CM further sought a comprehensive report on the issue.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 7^th, 2019.