CDA Islamabad Shelves Rapid Mass-Transit and CNG Bus Service Projects

Indeed Ironic ......... What else we can expect from these so called big cities civic bodies .........
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Financial crisis, lack of skilled staff

CDA shelves RMTS, CNG bus service projects

* Official says civic agency has set aside plans to improve traffic and public transport system
* Traffic and transport problems will aggravate

ISLAMABAD: The traffic and transport problems in the federal capital are likely to aggravate, as the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has shelved its Rapid Mass Transit System (RMTS) and CNG bus service projects.

Keeping in view the traffic problems, the CDA had planned to launch RMTS and CNG bus service between Rawalpindi and Islamabad, but due to financial crisis and lack of skilled staff the authority has shelved these projects. “Current traffic problems would further increase, as the CDA has set aside its plans to improve traffic system in the city, a senior official of the civic agency told Daily Times on Friday.

He said last year the authority had planned to launch CNG bus service through a joint venture with a private company. In the first phase the company had to ply 50 buses and later on increase their number to 300, he said. The official said the CDA had also signed an agreement with a private company in this regard.

He said the CDA had also made a plan to launch RMTS between Rawalpindi and Islamabad. According to the plan, the CDA had hired a consultant to conduct feasibility study of the project, but he did not start work due security reasons and refused to carry out the study, he said, adding, the CDA failed to hire another consultant to conduct the study, he said.

He said Islamabad, being the federal capital and centre of economic and services activities, is attracting traffic from all over the country. Since Rawalpindi and Islamabad are twin cities, an increased commuting takes place between the two cities, he added. So far the relevant authorities have failed to introduce an organised transport system due which people rely on the minibuses, he said, adding, the service of these buses is far below than an acceptable standard.

He said the twin cities were growing at a rate of more than four percent per annum, comparatively higher than national growth indicating significant increase in migration to these cities. Present population of Islamabad alone is 1.2 million, he said, adding that currently both the cities accommodated a population of over 2.78 million.

It is learnt that approximately 1,800 passenger vans are plying on Saddar, Pak Secretariat, Peshawar Mor, Karachi Company, Faisal Mosque, Adiala Jail and Pirwadhai routes of the twin cities, but they are unable to cope with the ever increasing heavy rush of passengers.

The officials said due to negligence of the authorities the vans plying on these route were mostly overloaded creating suffocation, especially during the rush hours in the morning and afternoon when people and students have to dash to their destinations. “Due to shortage of vans the public transporters not only indulge in overloading but also did not complete their routes creating problems for commuters on daily basis,” he said.

NAB Completes Probe into Lahore Rapid Mass Transit System Scam

Still confusing .............. what is this scam .......... and is this the reason for over all delay of this project .......................................
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LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has completed investigations of the misappropriation of Rs 401.15 million through bogus bills in the Lahore Rapid Mass Transit System and is seeking shifting of the case along with complete record from the Anti-Corruption Court to the Accountability Court.

Through an official letter, NAB Chief of Staff Ashfaq Ashraf has asked Anti-Corruption Director General Kazim Ali Malik to shift the case with complete record to the Accountability Court. After receiving the letter from the NAB, Malik said he issued directions to the officials concerned to shift the case.

According to a report, a reference would be submitted in the (accountability) court after approval from the NAB chairman. The government had already paid Rs 250 million to a France-based company for the project. The report said the NAB director general authorised an inquiry as the Punjab Transport Department officials had misappropriated Rs 400 million through bogus invoices. Transport Department Section Officer Shah Nawaz, his son Umar Farooq, his brother Afzaal Gulzar, his brother-in-law Javed Yousaf, cashier Shamshad Gulzar, his wife Farhat Shamshad, Accounts Officer Tahir Sherazi and Senior Auditor Hafeezur Rehman have been arrested.

Revival of KCR: KUTC Asked to Complete Survey by October 31

KARACHI (October 07 2009): Sindh Chief Secretary Fazal-ur-Rehman has directed Karachi Urban Transport Corporation (KUTC) to speed up the survey of encroachments around the railway track linked to the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) by October 31 and submit the report by next day.He directed this while presiding over a meeting of KUTC Board of Directors at his office on Tuesday.

Managing Director KUTC gave a presentation and apprised that so far the survey of 4305 houses has been conducted up to September 30, 2009 in connection with the resettlement programme linked to the KCR.The meeting unanimously decided to proceed on the resettlement work with a view to compensate the relevant inhabitants as per pattern of Lyari Express Way Resettlement Programme (LERP).

Sindh Government Against Giving 2,000 CNG Buses to Karachi

KARACHI (October 07 2009): The Sindh government has opposed bringing of at least 2,000 environment-friendly CNG buses only into the city, Business Recorder learnt on Tuesday. According to sources, Japan International Co-operation Agency (Jica) would provide a loan while the Federal Environment Ministry would provide the remaining funds to bring at least 2,000 environment-friendly CNG buses for all districts of Sindh province, which would ply on various routes of the province on public-private partnership.

The Centre has tasked the Jica to undertake the study after which the CNG buses would be imported from Japan. A preliminary meeting with Jica representative, Nobuhiro Kawatani, was held in Islamabad on September 15, 2009, they added. They said that Jica Mission had visited Karachi and held a meeting on October 5with the representatives of Sindh government and the City District Government Karachi (CDGK) for conducting preparatory survey.

The CDGK demanded to name the project as Karachi Urban Transport Master Plan. However, the Jica Mission did not agree, saying that the title should remain 'Preparatory Survey', which was later finalised as Karachi Transportation Improvement Project, they said.They said that Jica would submit the study report within 20 months after the award of work in order to main the quality and correctness of the report.

The study would include persons per trip, future traffic demand, roadside interview of citizens, transport related institution such as District Regional Transport Authority (DRTA), travel speed, Karachi Urban Transport Master Plan 2030, environment impact, estimate capital cost for Rapid Mass Transit Project, etc.Jica Mission stated that they would not select the consultant until PC-II is approved by the Central Development Working Party (CDWP).

They said that Sindh Transport Department had been sidelined in this project and it was made only for city, which the Sindh government would not accept at any cost. In the meeting on October 5, 2009, the transport department officials opposed the idea to run all these buses in Karachi alone, depriving other districts of the province from this travel facility.Moreover, a letter No SO (V) JICA/2009 was forwarded to the Additional Chief Secretary (Development) by the transport department, which stated that, "all the transport related projects come under the scope of Transport Department, Government of Sindh but no role has been provided to Transport Department under the draft.

It is therefore, proposed that Transport Department may be given due role for the project".It says Transport Department should be made as a counterpart agency and as a co-ordinating body for implementation of the study. It further proposed that the study should not be confined to Karachi city only and it should cover entire province and may be titled as Sindh Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Project. Sources said that the federal government should focus the entire province and not a single city, adding that the Sindh government should be handed over these buses that would be plied in all 23 districts of the province under direct supervision of provincial government

MoR Directed To Start KCR Project's Tendering Process: 'Third-Party Validation Put in Pending'

KARACHI (October 05 2009): The Cabinet Division has directed the Ministry of Railways to go ahead with the tendering process of the Rs 128.5 billion Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) Project, pending third party validation of the project, to avoid further delay.

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) had earlier asked the Pakistan Railways to conduct third party validation of the much awaited KCR project while approving it in the council's session on 3rd September. The validation of the project "Revival of KCR as Modern Commuter System" was made mandatory to ensure best design and assess cost escalation estimated by Special Assistance for Project Formation (SAPROF).But to avoid any delay in the execution of the project, sources said, the federal government had decided to remove the condition of validation by western experts.

They said the validation move was likely to further delay the project, as the modification and inordinate delay had already raised the project's cost to $1.58 billion from the original cost of $ 872.316 million.However, for the transparent and smooth execution of the project, the sources said the validation by a foreign country was needed for such a mega project. As the government of Japan was funding the important project the material mostly imported from the funding country was to be ensured as cost-effective, they added.

They said the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA), which had conducted different studies of the project with the guidelines of the World Bank had also raised no objection over the validation by a third party.However, showing his unawareness regarding pending validation of the project, Ejaz Khilji, Managing Director, Karachi Urban Transport Corporation (KUTC) said the third party involvement would not affect the process of the KCR project. The KCR project was to be funded by the government of Japan through the Japan Bank of International Co-operation (JBIC). Tokyo had commissioned 100 percent funding for the project under "STEP Loan" at 0.2 percent mark-up rate for a 40-year payback time, including a 10-year grace period.

The government of Japan had earlier promised to release $1.58 billion STEP loan to be used for the KCR project and it had commissioned a study under the aegis of Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO).They said KUTC would be the vehicle for the implementation of the project having on its Board-Directors the senior officials of Pakistan Railway, Government of Sindh and City District Government Karachi (CDGK).