Fading fast: ‘Step up to save our dying public transport system’
Association chairperson says Qingqis, corruption, strikes causing demise of transport sector
KARACHI:
Taking ownership of the metropolis is the only way to save the fading public transport system of the city, said Karachi Transport Ittehad chairperson Irshad Bukhari on Tuesday evening.
He was addressing a select gathering of citizens from different walks of life at the Urban Resource Centre about Karachi's shrinking transport facilities.
"The government has no interest in improving the transport sector," said Bukhari, who has seen the good days and the bad of the public transport business in his 45 years' association with it.
He was completely disillusioned about the prospect of any betterment in the near future.
He started off by chastising his fellow transporters for misbehaving with their passengers and displaying unethical poetry in their vehicles. He moved on to the corruption prevalent in every government department that dealt with transporters, including the transport department and the traffic police.
"Once, there used to be vehicle fitness, for which we had to take our vehicles to the fitness centre for inspection every six months but now the certificates come to you," he quipped, referring to widespread bribery in the issuance of motor vehicle fitness certificates to commercial vehicles.
Bukhari was also unhappy with the rise of Qingqi rickshaws in the city, terming them a major blow to the transport business.
"Four years ago, when there were no Qingqis in Karachi, we had 18,000 buses, minibuses and coaches, with enough business to keep them running," he said. "Now there are only 8,000 vehicles; most of the owners have sold their vehicles for scrap or converted them into mini-trucks because most of the passengers have been taken by the Qingqis."
Placing responsibility for the growth of Qingqis at former provincial transport minister Akhtar Jadoon's feet, he explained that Jadoon had promised the Qingqi owners that he would regularise them.
He added that the present transport secretary was also trying to regularise and certify Qingqis as public transport vehicles in Karachi and for this purpose, the transport department got a law passed by the Sindh Assembly that shifted motor vehicle fitness certification from the traffic police.
Bukhari further criticised political parties for torching public transport vehicles during strikes and riots in the city.
Regarding the training of their drivers and the vanished ticketing system, Bukhari said that there had once been large transport companies in the cities.
"They paid drivers monthly salaries and if there were any issues, labour courts would hear their petitions," he stated. "But now, the driver is the owner, and the transport companies are a thing of the past."
Denouncing the fare structure for public transporters in Karachi, he said that it should be made the same as in Lahore.
"The city needs at least 10,000 large buses or 20,000 minibuses to meet the demands of the commuters," he said, calling for the availability of bank loans to help transporters buy new vehicles. "Our association will guarantee that the loans are repaid in time."
Published in The Express Tribune, October 2nd, 2014.
Taking ownership of the metropolis is the only way to save the fading public transport system of the city, said Karachi Transport Ittehad chairperson Irshad Bukhari on Tuesday evening.
He was addressing a select gathering of citizens from different walks of life at the Urban Resource Centre about Karachi's shrinking transport facilities.
"The government has no interest in improving the transport sector," said Bukhari, who has seen the good days and the bad of the public transport business in his 45 years' association with it.
He was completely disillusioned about the prospect of any betterment in the near future.
He started off by chastising his fellow transporters for misbehaving with their passengers and displaying unethical poetry in their vehicles. He moved on to the corruption prevalent in every government department that dealt with transporters, including the transport department and the traffic police.
"Once, there used to be vehicle fitness, for which we had to take our vehicles to the fitness centre for inspection every six months but now the certificates come to you," he quipped, referring to widespread bribery in the issuance of motor vehicle fitness certificates to commercial vehicles.
Bukhari was also unhappy with the rise of Qingqi rickshaws in the city, terming them a major blow to the transport business.
"Four years ago, when there were no Qingqis in Karachi, we had 18,000 buses, minibuses and coaches, with enough business to keep them running," he said. "Now there are only 8,000 vehicles; most of the owners have sold their vehicles for scrap or converted them into mini-trucks because most of the passengers have been taken by the Qingqis."
Placing responsibility for the growth of Qingqis at former provincial transport minister Akhtar Jadoon's feet, he explained that Jadoon had promised the Qingqi owners that he would regularise them.
He added that the present transport secretary was also trying to regularise and certify Qingqis as public transport vehicles in Karachi and for this purpose, the transport department got a law passed by the Sindh Assembly that shifted motor vehicle fitness certification from the traffic police.
Bukhari further criticised political parties for torching public transport vehicles during strikes and riots in the city.
Regarding the training of their drivers and the vanished ticketing system, Bukhari said that there had once been large transport companies in the cities.
"They paid drivers monthly salaries and if there were any issues, labour courts would hear their petitions," he stated. "But now, the driver is the owner, and the transport companies are a thing of the past."
Denouncing the fare structure for public transporters in Karachi, he said that it should be made the same as in Lahore.
"The city needs at least 10,000 large buses or 20,000 minibuses to meet the demands of the commuters," he said, calling for the availability of bank loans to help transporters buy new vehicles. "Our association will guarantee that the loans are repaid in time."
Published in The Express Tribune, October 2nd, 2014.