Alternative route: Sheikh Rasheed says no to metro bus project

Proposes Leh Expressway as alternative, says it can be completed at half the cost.

RAWALPINDI:

Arguing the case for affected traders, Member National Assembly Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad asked the government to cancel the metro bus service project.

Ahmad, who is also President of the Awami Muslim League, was speaking at a press conference held at Lal Haveli on Tuesday. The conference was attended by local politicians, representatives of traders associations and businessmen.

He said that he would soon go with traders to take up the issue with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

Offering an alternative traffic-related development, he said that Leh Expressway can be completed for Rs22 billion, which is less than half the cost of the bus project.

He claimed the project was unfeasible because the infrastructure of Rawalpindi was different from Faisalabad, Lahore and Multan as it only had one major artery with number of underpasses and flyovers.

“There is no space left on this road to launch any other project,” he said, adding that the Leh Expressway was the only way to travel fast to Islamabad. He added that the expressway would also resolve problems caused by Leh flooding during the monsoon.

“The expressway could help generate revenue for the government through shopping complexes along the way, whereas the metro project will only result in losses for traders and citizens,” the MNA argued.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 19^th, 2014.