The projects have been placed under the Planning and Development Division. The initial Rs10 billion allocation is part of the division’s Rs25.5 billion development budget, according to the documents. HOTO: ONLINE
ISLAMABAD:
The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz-led federal government has included Metro Bus Service projects for Karachi and Islamabad in the next fiscal year’s proposed development programme.
A total of Rs10 billion have been allocated for the first phase of the two projects which are aimed at fulfilling the party’s promises to the voters. The PML-N, during its campaign, promised to introduce a modern bus service on the pattern of the Lahore Metro Bus in Karachi, Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
According to official documents, the Planning Commission (PC), which is currently finalising the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for 2013-14, has included the notional price of Rs30 billion each for Metro Bus Karachi and Metro Bus Islamabad-Rawalpindi. The proposed projects are part of PSDP, which will be tabled before the National Economic Council (NEC), to be headed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, before being presented to Parliament for approval.
According to PC officials, the notional prices were set just to
create heads in the new plan. They maintained the actual price of the projects will be determined after the completion of feasibility studies. The allocation of Rs10 billion (Rs5 billion each) for the initial phase of the two projects is also flexible and can be increased depending on the government’s priorities, they added.
The projects have been placed under the Planning and Development Division. The initial Rs10 billion allocation is part of the division’s Rs25.5 billion development budget, according to the documents.
PSDP tackles infrastructure projects that are fully or in some cases largely funded by the federal government using its own resources. However, it is not yet clear whether the federal or provincial governments will bear the cost of the Metro Bus projects, or if the cost will be shared between them. The Lahore project was funded by the provincial government using its own resources.
The Rs30 billion notional price was also derived from the cost of the Lahore Metro Bus project. On average, the Lahore project cost Rs1 billion against every kilometre of the project. The cost of buses was not included in the Rs30 billion.
According to an official the Asian Development Bank has already completed the pre-feasibility study of the Rawalpindi-Islamabad project. No work has been done on the Karachi project, however.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 7th, 2013.
COMMENTS (44)
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OMG does Islamabad really need a metro bus system? It's only on 1 million people!! Make a subway system in Karachi and Lahore! They both need it! Make a metro bus system in Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Multan, Faisalabad, and Hyderabad! Remember what you promised the small cities too PMLN!
@Zahir Cheema: Did you vote for the PMLN? Aside from that, please be patient. Nobody has made a fool out of you. Resources are limited and work is being started. The workings of a country take a long time.
are you crazy karachi need merto train run by eletrice.
faisalabad needs metro bus and international airport
faisalabad needs metro bus and world class international airport being a 3rd largest and textile hub of Pakistan.. Faisalabad deserve these mega projects now .... God bless u
metro bus should be launched in multan on urgent basis.
Do you think that 'Namaloon afrad' will allow you to carry-on? No! they never, they do their best to fail the project at any cost. A Karachi wala.
@Zafar Alam:
"Under ground metro train like western countries is best solution for control huge traffice in Karachi city. Bus culture will be fail in this big city.."
I agree. I don't understand why Pakistan has not invested in rail metros. The only reason I can think of would be lack of funds? Buses are not the solution for solving traffic congestion and pollution in big cities.
Every major city has a large metro rail system in India, or are in the process of implementing one. While the project costs are very high due to the need for land acquisition, tunneling, raised concrete structures and expensive coach systems, the payback is enormous.
10 billion for installation...rest of the budget for keep them running
There should be more emphasis on subways rather than metro bus service.
they should connet the Haipur hazara to Islamabad too …
You have mentioned several times you live in Karachi . See everybody drops in Karachi just to EARN by any "means" not to OWN
@Ali Tanoli
in last five years ppp cm in sindh didn’t try to run a single bus from gov. expense but he did issue tractors from interior Sindh farmers
Best of Luck for Pakistani friends, but will any one please tell me why Pakistan is not going towards Delhi Metro type (Tube or Elevated) Mass Rapid Train system after all its carbon free? Because i think This bus service is not going to solve your transportation problems. (I have checked Population of both cities)
Dont they know that all the works of studies are completed for two corridors in Karachi by JICA. it just need a start of construction.
who needs Metro Bus in ISLAMABADA???? Put it somewhere else man. Peshawar, Faisalabad, Multan anywhere . No need in Islamabad.
First they should complete those four flyovers that are affecting my daily route
I would not suggest, which city must have or not. However, as a tourism student, I would suggest to do similar project in places like Swat, and Naran, such project ll boost jobs in the region.
All those people who are saying that Islamabad does not need metro bus system, please travel in the local transport then comment...Islamabad is the one and only capital city in the world which has no transport facility provided by the government
they should connet the Haipur hazara to Islamabad too ...
We need law and order in the city. We dont want to hear the news that "Namaloom afraad ne 2 metro buses nazre aatish ker deen".
The PPP led Sindh government and the transport mafia would try their best to hamper this. They can't afford losing more of their vote.
Islamabad DOES need a bus service. They keep widening roads, and building avenues and flyovers instead. They should have introduced buses 10 years ago instead of that wastage of money, and destroying green belts.
Buses that connect to Pindi and all the suburban developments are especially needed.
What about Peshawar???
This is a sign of PML N taking interest in Karachi and willing to do some good. But the question is who will implement the project while in the entire sind lot there is no body capable so they should be sending the team with before the release of funds.
Helloooooo, does Karachi have broader roads where Metros can be ran ? NO, first fix absurd traffic and roads of Karachi and then introduce Metro Service. We don't want to be in pain running cars and motorcycles on narrow roads
Need the revival of circular railway in Karachi on priority basis.
And what about the buses polluting environment from last 50 years. As we all know that there is a huge amount of money given by transport unions to Govt so that they can continue their horrible buses running on these streets. Even Green Bus Service failed to get success here because of these transport mafias. The normal bus fare of Karachi bus is from Rupees 10 to 20 and even some bus owners are charging Rupees 30 because there is no other bus running on that route. Karachi is being run by mafias around the city from normal fruit seller to transport system and even I can see some barber shops and cobblers with the note on their walls which is saying that "According to Karachi barber association we are announcing our new rate list and they have distributed barber shops from different areas into 3 categories from A to C.
@Zahir Cheema Party manifestos cover a period of 5 years. Not every project will be completed in the 1st year!
please do something for khi situation
Please give us electricity. Leave the rest.
these people don't know how to prioritize. we don't have clean water, no proper health and education system, no electricity.
why not put the 10billion to help with the circular debt, why not put 70 billion BB income support program to circular debt. its crazy
Bus burning culture is a norm in Karachi. It will be a waste to spend so much money and then see it go up in flames.
Metro buses for Karachi must be preceded by a security overhaul of Karachi
People of Islamabad DO NOT need the metro bus. Just get us our electricity. 12 hours of loadshedding is NOT acceptable
We need on priority basis health facilities, electricity nothing else. Yesterday,energy conference ended up with a decision to use coal instead of other resources. This descion was not new, everbody with simple knowlege was talking that Pakistan should switch over to use coal instead of oil and gas. Nothing was new in the conference decision. Now we should not make fool of the nation because time has changed. Positive and immediate remedial steps should be taken and this is chance for the PMLN, failing which this party wll also knocked out like PPP.
Under ground metro train like western countries is best solution for control huge traffice in Karachi city. Bus culture will be fail in this big city..
I don't think islamabad really needs a metro bus system but peshawar is in a dire need for this project....WHY NOT FOR PESHAWAR??
please dont do...it will be a big disaster..lahore metero bus is being subsidized at 1billion rupee every month...mian shb do something that is genuinely good for the welfare of people not a political gimmick
I hope Sindh Govt take some notice
First Priority Should Have Been To Spend 25 Billion On Infrastructure Of Local Law Enforcment Agencies So They Have Better Training And Better Tools To Stop Crimnal.
We need the Lahore metro bus in KHI too
I think Islamabad doesn't need a metro bus as of such considering the city's size. Instead, the money set aside for Islamabad should be used to make a railway metro for karachi as Karachi is a huge city, and metro bus alone wouldn't be enough to reduce significant traffic.
It will be good for the people of Karachi as well as of Islamabad.