40 buses arrive at Karachi Port

‘Second fleet to reach in five weeks, Green Line BRT to be launched in two months’

KARACHI:

A fleet of 40 shiny new buses arrived at the Karachi Port on Sunday, bringing with it renewed hopes for the completion of the Green Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system for a metropolis, which has long yearned for a sustainable public transport system.

The Green Line BRT project launched in February 2016 is yet two months away from completion, however, as it will take that long for the government to install the required software, train the drivers and set up the ticketing system. A fleet of 40 more of the buses imported from China is slated to reach the port city in five weeks.

"We are fulfilling promises made to Karachi. Citizens will be able to travel in modern and luxury buses [at the same rates] as Qingqi rickshaws," said Sindh Governor Imran Ismail as a large vessel with the buses loaded on its deck landed at Karachi Port.

Lambasting the Pakistan Peoples Party for failing to provide a mass transit system for Karachiites in its 13-year-long rule in the province, Ismail said that with the launch of the Green Line BRT, citizens would benefit from the best transport facilities.

It is one thing to make tall claims, said Ismail. As many as 40 buses imported from China have arrived today and another 40 will arrive next month, he added. "This is Sindh's first mass transit project."

Also present at the off-loading ceremony, Umar said that Karachiites would continue to receive good news. The federal minister said a command and control centre has been set up for pending transport projects, including the Green Line and Orange Line BRTs. A bus depot has been built for 80 buses and 22 bus stations have been constructed, he added.

"Karachi is the biggest city of Pakistan. For the first time, a modern transport system is going to be launched here." Umar said that these buses would be operational in two months after the drivers complete their training and a test run is carried out.

The Green Line BRT is estimated at the cost of Rs27 billion and 54-kilometre-long roads are being constructed under the Karachi Transformation Plan, which entails five transport projects, said the minister. He added that the Karachi Circular Railway will be approved at the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting next week, among other big projects.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf stalwart said that it was unfortunate that Karachi was not given its due rights by previous provincial and federal governments. The city voted for the PTI in large numbers in the 2018 general elections and as it is the highest and largest tax-paying city, it has a special right over the federation, added Umar.

Federal ministers Ali Zaidi and Aminul Haque and others attended the ceremony.

Hybrid buses

The 18-metre-long green and black hybrid buses made for a grand sight at the Karachi Port as they arrived stacked on the ship's deck. Each of the 40-seater buses will run on an automatic charging battery system as well as diesel.

They have been equipped with an automated system that will launch an extinguishing operation in case the engine catches fire. Besides, they are equipped with an automated ramp and have a section reserved for people with disability.

The vestibule buses have been manufactured by Zong Tong, which is among the top five such companies in China, and their articulated system has been taken from Europe. The buses underwent a special crash test in China, which was inspected by SGS Company.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Al-Haj Bus Company General Manager Shakoor Ahmed Khan, whose organisation has been given the charge of maintaining the buses for three years, said that the buses procured for Karachi are more advanced than the ones for Lahore, Islamabad and Peshawar.

Special safety features have been added to these buses after the defects reported in Lahore and Peshawar, he said, adding that similar buses, deemed to be of a European rank three, were also imported by Saudi Arabia last year during Hajj and are being imported to the Middle East and other European countries as well.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, September 20^th, 2021.