The decision was announced during a meeting of the transporters with the DCO and the Lahore Commissioner yesterday. It comes after transporters rejected all attempts by the government to shift the bus stand out of the city. The CDGL has settled for some changes to the plans of the existing terminal that will help ease traffic congestion in the area, at least temporarily.
According to the proposed plan, all the departure lanes currently on the left side of the terminal will be shifted to the right side. The space ao freed will be used for the parking of auto rickshawa, taxies and private vehicles. A one-lane system will be introduced for all the buses departing for other cities.
A separate lane will be allocated for wagons at one end of the terminal. The CDGL has also suggested that the bus terminal be paved in order to lower the dust level in the area. Hiring a staff of 50 from the Solid Waste Management Company has also been proposed to help keep the terminal area clean.
The transporters welcomed the CDGL’s decision and assured the administration of their cooperation.
However, the meeting was not all a smooth ride. The transporters and the city government officials disagreed about a few things.
During the meeting chaired by the commissioner, DCO Ahad Cheema said that the administration had concerns about the transporters’ lack of discipline.
“They park their buses wherever they want,” the DCO said. He said that the city government had proposed paid hourly parking for buses to discourage bus owners who were in the habit of parking their buses at terminal for hours.
The transporters, however, expressed their taken on the idea. “We pay Rs500 per bus for 24 hours. The only reason we park the buses for hours is because there is a long queue of buses departing and we are waiting for our turn,” said a representative.
To this the DCO said that the administration will make sure that buses depart at the scheduled time.
Commissioner, Khusru Pervaiz Khan, said that though relocation of the bus terminal was the “need of the hour”, the city government would only shift the terminal after consultation with the transporters.
“The CDGL has found 500 kanals of land near Thokar Niaz Baig”, said Pervaiz adding that the city government would arrange for the transporters to visit the site before they make any decision.
The transporters accused the city government of being “unfair” to them. “During the PML-N’s last tenure, the bus terminal was shifted here [Badami Bagh] from the Lahore Railway Station.
However, the place was later given to Daewoo who still operates intra-city buses from there,” Tanveer Khan, the Punjab Intercity Owners Association Lahore chairman said.”Daewoo was granted another terminal near Kalma Chowk from where it operates its inter-city buses. “Will the city government shift those terminals out of the city too?” he asked.
The transporters said that the Saggian Bridge neighbourhoodwould be a more feasible option for them if the bus terminal were to be relocated.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 22nd, 2010.
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