In 1960, Karachi used to be among those cities which had its own mass transit system, in the shape of tram, which used to run on presently know as MA Jinnah Road. After more than 60 years, the city’s residents still lack a good transportation system. To cater the needs of the public, the Sindh government passed the long awaited Sindh Mass Transit Authority (SMTA) Bill in 2016.
After more than 14 years of its ruling, the PPP-led government in Sindh managed to demonstrate some success in its civic administration by introducing some buses in Karachi.
Daily Times learnt from different sources that during 14 years of PPP’s governance in Sindh, at least 19 times in different years the transport department made different promises, planned a variety of projects and prepared numbers of paperwork for initiating various public transport systems for Karachiites, importing new buses from different parts of the world and launching public-private partnership schemes, but they all proved in a vain, media hype stunts or just fake promises.
Once again Sindh Minister for Information, Transport and Mass Transit Sharjeel Inam Memon told that Sindh Government has planned to bring thousands of buses in the metropolis as the Sindh Transport Department is already working on modern BRT system under Red Line, Orange Line, Yellow Line, Blue Line and People’s Intra-District Bus Service.
In July 2014, the federal government-funded Green Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system was announced by the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz government. On February 26, 2016, the then prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, had laid the foundation stone for a 17.8 kilometre track. After Nawaz’s govt the work on the project remained suspended for several months. On December 10, 2021 former Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated the Green Line Bus Rapid Transit project.
After this the Sindh government has also announced plans for Orange Line,Red Line, Blue Line and Yellow Line to resolve the transportation issue and connect the entire to a mass transit System. As per the passed bill of 2016, The Sindh Mass Transit Authority is to look after these projects.
These proposed projects will help increase the use of quality public transport in Karachi. The projects are economically justified by major time savings for BRT passengers; vehicle operating cost savings; and better air quality and reduced carbon emissions through an innovative waste-to-fuel scheme, which will improve the public health and mitigate climate change. It will also make Karachi safer, greener, and more inclusive and competitive.
As per details now only BRT Green Line Phase 1 is operational with 80 buses from Surjani Town up to Numaish and Orange Line was to be commenced at the end of May 2022, while Red Line and Yellow line are in the implementation phase though Blue Line and Brown Line still on the paper. The Green Line is a project of the federal government and will be handed over to the Sindh government in three years.
Despite having the shortest route in all BRTS, the Orange Line could not be completed as it has been five years to its ground-breaking. While Provincial transport minister Sharjeel Memon had set May 30, 2022 as the deadline for the project. However, the construction work pushed the launch further delayed by several days, the launch is set to take place soon. The route stretches 4 kilometers, from Orangi Town to Matriculation Board Chowrangi. Sindh government has dedicated this project to the lifetime philanthropic efforts of Abdus Sattar Edhi.
In the BRT’s Red line 29 kilometers long corridor about 250 buses would pick and drop commuters at 24 stations from Malir Halt, Gulistan Jouhar- to Numaish in downtown of the metropolis. While the 22-kilometre-long Yellow Line project with 268 buses will connect Numaish to Korangi Industrial area and Landhi to Dawood Chowrangi.
The 30-kilometre Blue Line with 60 buses will extend from Merriweather Tower to Bahria Town via Jahangir Road, Liaquatabad and Shahrah-e-Pakistan to Sohrab Goth and M-9 (Motorway) Bahria Town. It will be a private project sponsored by Bahria Town.
As per obtained details, 80 buses of Green Line, 49 buses for Orange line, 250 buses for Red Line, 268 buses for Yellow Line, 60 buses for Blue Line and 240 busses under the Peoples Intra District Bus Service project, total 947 busses will be on roads after completion of all these projects. While on other hand PPP government claims to bring thousands of buses in a year or two.
Dr. Noman Ahmed, professor and dean of the faculty of architecture and management sciences, NED University Karachi shared his experience that it will be financially unsustainable, and will only operate till the time the government subsidizes them, adding that Karachi needs 25000 buses which can be introduced in phase wise manner. “If all BRT corridors become functional, they will still cater only seven to eight per cent of the total number of population”, he disclosed
Dr Noman showed his reservation that to run these buses, an annual high subsidy will be needed, which will be next to impossible for the government to provide. Once the financial burden proves too much, the buses will come to a grinding halt, as it happened with the bus services of the Karachi Transport Corporation in 1996 and the Karachi Circular Railway trains in 1999.
An official from Operations Department, Green Line BRT told that more than a million people have travelled through its dedicated corridor on 80 buses raising expectations that the service would be catering for the projected number of commuters every day, adding that the response of the public has been impressive. According to official data, In Green Line only in a month, a total of 1,093,000 passengers had travelled without any break. This shows on an average 35,000 people on weekdays and the number sometimes reaches 50,000 during weekends.
“The aim of the Sindh Mass Transit Authority is to facilitate locals of Karachi and provide the metropolis with a desperately-needed public transport infrastructure”, said Bashir Hussain AD legal SMTA, adding that 240 buses will be operational under SMTA would run in Karachi on seven routes and may be covering 80% population of designed rotes, he informed
During traveling in the Red line a passenger. Danish Nawab, who is a resident of Nazimabad, shared his experience that it is absolutely amazing because saving my money, time and energy. Passengers like Danish are paying Rs25 to Rs55 for their respective destinations and enjoying the ride in an 18-metre-long bus.
While talking about Sindh Govt’s activeness regarding metropolis, Karachiites see this as a move towards winning votes in the approaching local bodies polls. After all, Sindh had launched a similar service with 10 buses before the 2018 elections adding that PPP govt always keeps saying that once the bus rapid transit (BRT) becomes fully functional, these problems will go away but Karachiities’ problems won’t go away with these projects.
Daily Times learnt that hundreds of old trees have been cut down in the jurisdiction of Cantonment Board Malir (CBM) to make way for the Red Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, According to the information shared at a public hearing of the project’s environmental assessment report in May, 2018, an estimated 23,693 trees existed along the BRT route, a large number of which would be uprooted, some would be transplanted and, if forest department’s suggestion was followed, around 300 indigenous trees would be spared.