Pay up: No free Metro Bus rides from Sunday
Rs20 will be charged irrespective of destination.
The decision to impose the fare came after the government realised that genuine travellers were being forced to use alternative means of transport while joy riders continued their brouhaha. PHOTO: TARIQ HASSAN/EXPRESS
LAHORE:
The government has decided to put an end to the rumpus created by free Metro Bus rides by imposing a flat rate of Rs20 as of Sunday, The Express Tribune has learnt.
The Metro Bus Service (MBS) personnel had tried their best to discipline commuters and encourage them to form queues to board buses, but they continued taking joy rides pushing their way through.
The authority had deputed a policeman and an internee in every bus to educate people on public transport etiquette but very few people paid heed to them. The decision to impose the fare came after the government realised that genuine travellers were being forced to use alternative means of transport while joy riders continued their brouhaha.
The MBS will charge Rs20 for the journey irrespective of destination from Sunday. A token would be issued for now. It will be upgraded to a card and an automatic machine system later.
Passengers at the Kalma Chowk station The Express Tribune talked to expressed relief and thanked the government for acknowledging the joy-riding problem.
Usman Ali, a handicapped student at the station, said he had been waiting for an hour to board a bus. Whenever a bus arrived at the station, some people would storm out but no one would be allowed in. He said the new fare would improve the situation a lot.
Lahore Transportation Company Chairman Khawaja Ahmad Hassaan told The Express Tribune the government had decided to introduce the fare early to discourage joy-riders from wrecking the buses.
MBS personnel will continue educating travellers about transport etiquette. He said he had visited the MBS and noticed that men had on their own allowed women to occupy the front half of the bus.
Punjab Metro Bus Service Authority General Manager Uzair Shah said he had not been told about the introduction of the fare. However, he said this will reduce the number of passengers by 70 percent. “Only then will we know how many people actually intend on using this service,” Shah said. Stations will become off-limits to visitors as they would need to buy the token to enter the station, he added.
He said people all the way from Sheikhupura, Gujranwala and Kasur had come to enjoy the free ride and see the city. Since these people did not have a particular destination in mind, they boarded buses from Gujjumata and Shahdara and did not get off, he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2013.
The government has decided to put an end to the rumpus created by free Metro Bus rides by imposing a flat rate of Rs20 as of Sunday, The Express Tribune has learnt.
The Metro Bus Service (MBS) personnel had tried their best to discipline commuters and encourage them to form queues to board buses, but they continued taking joy rides pushing their way through.
The authority had deputed a policeman and an internee in every bus to educate people on public transport etiquette but very few people paid heed to them. The decision to impose the fare came after the government realised that genuine travellers were being forced to use alternative means of transport while joy riders continued their brouhaha.
The MBS will charge Rs20 for the journey irrespective of destination from Sunday. A token would be issued for now. It will be upgraded to a card and an automatic machine system later.
Passengers at the Kalma Chowk station The Express Tribune talked to expressed relief and thanked the government for acknowledging the joy-riding problem.
Usman Ali, a handicapped student at the station, said he had been waiting for an hour to board a bus. Whenever a bus arrived at the station, some people would storm out but no one would be allowed in. He said the new fare would improve the situation a lot.
Lahore Transportation Company Chairman Khawaja Ahmad Hassaan told The Express Tribune the government had decided to introduce the fare early to discourage joy-riders from wrecking the buses.
MBS personnel will continue educating travellers about transport etiquette. He said he had visited the MBS and noticed that men had on their own allowed women to occupy the front half of the bus.
Punjab Metro Bus Service Authority General Manager Uzair Shah said he had not been told about the introduction of the fare. However, he said this will reduce the number of passengers by 70 percent. “Only then will we know how many people actually intend on using this service,” Shah said. Stations will become off-limits to visitors as they would need to buy the token to enter the station, he added.
He said people all the way from Sheikhupura, Gujranwala and Kasur had come to enjoy the free ride and see the city. Since these people did not have a particular destination in mind, they boarded buses from Gujjumata and Shahdara and did not get off, he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2013.