CNG buses hitting the roads too slowly
Of the promised 16 buses, only 12 have been able to ply the route between Surjani Town and Tower
Of the 16 buses to be brought on the roads around a month, only 12 have hit the roads. The Rs10 million project has once again been hit by bureaucratic apathy. PHOTO: AYSHA SALEEM/EXPRESS
KARACHI:
The much-awaited Green CNG buses launched last month are hitting the roads too slowly as only 12 of the promised 16 buses have come out of the terminal.
"The remaining four buses are facing technical problems and their spare parts are not easily available in the city," explained the additional director of CNG buses, Nasir Mehmood. The spare parts have to be imported from Korea and that is taking time, he added.
On August 26, local government minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah inaugurated the re-launch of 16 CNG buses in Sujarni Town's CNG bus terminal. The project promised to provide a comfortable transportation facility to the citizens.
The commuters, who had anticipated an end to their transportation woes with this Rs10-million project, may have to wait longer to get on these buses. Faizan, a resident of North Karachi, admitted he has yet to board one of these buses. The news of the re-launch of CNG buses was very exciting for him after the ban on Qingqis in the entire city. "But the government once again made a fool out of us," he said. "The minister and officials came, had their photo sessions and then went, leaving the residents out on a limb."
Another resident of Surjani Town, Muhammad Furqar, who lives near the CNG bus terminal, told The Express Tribune that the fanfare with which Shah came to inaugurate project died down as soon as the minister left. "After his departure, no one bothered to look at this area again and hardly any CNG bus left the terminal," he said.
According to one of the mechanics at the terminal, it was never possible to bring 16 CNG buses on roads all of a sudden. "These buses had been standing here since last three years," he pointed out, adding that its spare parts are not available in the entire city. "It is a failed project," he claimed.
Meanwhile, the 12 buses are leaving the terminal every day, assured the terminal manager Ashraf Awan. The buses leave the terminal every 30 to 45 minutes, he said. At the time of the launch, the authorities promised the buses would leave every 10 minutes.
The LG minister was, however, unavailable to comment on the delays facing this project.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 4th, 2015.
The much-awaited Green CNG buses launched last month are hitting the roads too slowly as only 12 of the promised 16 buses have come out of the terminal.
"The remaining four buses are facing technical problems and their spare parts are not easily available in the city," explained the additional director of CNG buses, Nasir Mehmood. The spare parts have to be imported from Korea and that is taking time, he added.
On August 26, local government minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah inaugurated the re-launch of 16 CNG buses in Sujarni Town's CNG bus terminal. The project promised to provide a comfortable transportation facility to the citizens.
The commuters, who had anticipated an end to their transportation woes with this Rs10-million project, may have to wait longer to get on these buses. Faizan, a resident of North Karachi, admitted he has yet to board one of these buses. The news of the re-launch of CNG buses was very exciting for him after the ban on Qingqis in the entire city. "But the government once again made a fool out of us," he said. "The minister and officials came, had their photo sessions and then went, leaving the residents out on a limb."
Another resident of Surjani Town, Muhammad Furqar, who lives near the CNG bus terminal, told The Express Tribune that the fanfare with which Shah came to inaugurate project died down as soon as the minister left. "After his departure, no one bothered to look at this area again and hardly any CNG bus left the terminal," he said.
According to one of the mechanics at the terminal, it was never possible to bring 16 CNG buses on roads all of a sudden. "These buses had been standing here since last three years," he pointed out, adding that its spare parts are not available in the entire city. "It is a failed project," he claimed.
Meanwhile, the 12 buses are leaving the terminal every day, assured the terminal manager Ashraf Awan. The buses leave the terminal every 30 to 45 minutes, he said. At the time of the launch, the authorities promised the buses would leave every 10 minutes.
The LG minister was, however, unavailable to comment on the delays facing this project.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 4th, 2015.