Public Transport System on Verge of Collapse in Lahore

* Only 700 buses out of the target of 900 are plying 20 out of the 53 allotted routes

* PTA inviting private companies to launch buses.

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LAHORE: The existing public transport system that replaced commuter vans with buses on the verge of collapse because of financial loss said Urban Transport Bus Owners Association President Bashir Sial.

District Regional Transport Authority (DRTA) Secretary Munir Ahmed Joiya said, “We realise that the transport system of the city is in poor condition but the situation will be controlled soon.”The system of high occupancy public transport buses was introduced in response to a treaty with the United Nations (UN) to save citizens from environmental pollution caused by the outdated commuters vans.

Another reason for introducing private bus companies was the failure of the Punjab Road Transport Company, which cost the government Rs 2.5 billion a year in staff salaries and utility bills only, the official said.The official said that the Transport Department had tried launching 900 buses in the city replacing almost 7,000 commuter vans, but they could only introduce 700 of them, which caused problems for commuters.

According to the department, around 950,000 commuters travelled by buses every day. The existing transport system could carry only 50 percent of them, the official said.The department had also failed to introduce the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) transport service in the city, said the official.The authorities concerned were considering allowing vans to start plying in the city again, the official said.

The official said that 53 routes were allotted to high occupancy buses and 37 routes to the vans, but of the total 53 routes, only 20 were being used, whereas vans could be seen on almost every route of the city, including those allotted to the buses. The Supreme Court (SC).had ordered that vans could not be stopped from plying the routes allotted to buses as the buses could not meet the seating requirements. A transport company owner said that in 1998, the chief minister had directed the Transport Department to encourage private bus companies by giving them incentives.

He said that the private sector, under an agreement, was asked to launch high occupancy buses bought on lease through banks. According to the agreement, the bus owners were asked to pay 30 percent of the total amount as down payment, he said, adding that the government also took the responsibility of paying the four percent interest on the amount. He added that the government had promised to provide subsidy to the transporters but it was done only once.

He said that there was a condition in the agreement that the companies would increase the fare according to the price of diesel.Unfulfilled promises: When the buses were launched, the diesel price was Rs 10 per litre and the minimum fare was Rs 3 and maximum the Rs 15, but as the diesel price increased to Rs 50, the minimum fare was increased to Rs 8 only and the maximum fare was Rs 17.

He also said that some of the companies had already closed down as they had gone bankrupt. Sial said that the Transport Department had promised to facilitate the transporters by providing parking space to the buses at the rate of Rs 10 per month but it was not fulfilled.PTA secretary: Provincial Transport Authority (PTA) Secretary Muhammad Iqbal said, “We are inviting the transporting companies through advertisement to launch more buses. This time we will give incentives to them but we are waiting for the chief minister to finalise the policy.”

He added that they would allow vans to ply only those routes which would not be available to buses.

Chinese Company to Start CKD Bus Manufacturing in Pakistan

A three member Chinese delegation from King Long Automotive Industry (KLAI) visited investment Division and Board of Investment (ID&BOI) here on Monday to explore the ways for Complete Knock-Down (CKD) manufacturing in the country.

The delegation comprised Richard Zhang, Assistant to President and Overseas Business General Manager, Andrew Chen, Project Manager and Xu Chang Hua, Manager, said BoI press statement.

King Long Automotive of China is involved in the production of bus business of international standards and has recently entered the European market and has further strengthened its global presence, the press statement added.

The delegation members held detailed meeting with BoI officials. The meeting was chaired by Riaz-ul-Haq, Director General, BOI.

Riaz-ul-Haq gave a presentation to the delegation and discussed economic profile of Pakistan, various reforms and their implications on investment, liberal investment policy while FDI trends from China were highlighted in particular.

The delegation was informed that currently over 60 Chinese companies were successfully operating in key economic sectors of Pakistan, the major ones being, China Mobile in Telecommunications, Pak-China Investment Company in Financial Services, Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. in Information Technology, China National Machinery Import & Export Corp. in mining and explorations and China State Construction Engineering Co. in construction of 7 Star Hotel in Pakistan. (Centaurus in Islamabad .....www.thecentaurus.com)

During the discussion delegation was also informed about the China specific economic zones and the incentives it offers to the investors, including 5 year tax holiday and 100% depreciation allowance.

The Chinese delegation intends to start a CKD manufacturing project in Pakistan in which the assembly plant for the manufacturing of buses would be setup in accordance with the local needs. For this project, the Group has already purchased substantial land in the national industrial zone near Rawat.

Haq assured the potential investors of due assistance and support on the part of ID&BOI.

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Details about the company can be read at www.king-long.com.cn

Rs 2.27 billion Zero Point Interchange Project: Construction Work to Start on July 15

ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) will start the construction work of Rs 2.27 billion Zero Point Interchange Project on July 15, CDA Chairman Kamran Lashari told media persons on Friday during a presentation on traffic diversion plan for the interchange project.He said that the project would complete within two years.

“The CDA has short-listed five firms for the project and the whole process would be completed in the next month and construction work will start on July 15,” said Lashari.The mega project will play a vital role in reducing the traffic problems in the town, he said. “The project was pending for the last several years due many reasons but now the CDA is now ready to start work on it,” he added.Lashari said that they had learnt lessons from the past mistakes.

“Now the consultant hired by the CDA to design the project has prepared a comprehensive traffic diversion plan to avoid traffic problems during the construction of the interchange. The consultant has prepared the diversion plan with the coordination of CDA and Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP),” he said.Replying to a question, he said that the CDA had appointed a special director to monitor the project during its construction to maintain the quality of work.Ongoing road projects: Lashari said that the authority has given deadline to contractors for the completion of ongoing road projects so that the smooth flow of traffic could be ensured.

The CDA has already started widening of Islamabad Highway up to five lanes, while the widening of Kashmir Highway will start within a month or two, he added. “Two rigid lanes will be added to both the highways to avoid rutting in future due to extraordinary heavy traffic. Weigh stations will also be set up at all the three under- construction electronic toll plazas,” said Lashari.Free of traffic signals: He said that the interchange would be signal-free allowing smooth flow of traffic coming from four directions.

The interchange will provide a permanent solution to traffic jams at Zero Point and growing traffic problems in the federal capital, he added.Maj (r) Fazal Karim, project manager of ECIL, a consultant firm hired by CDA for designing of the project, said that the construction of interchange would be completed in three phases.He said that in the first phase loops and slip roads of interchange would be constructed.

In the second phase, a bridge will be constructed over one lane of Islamabad Highway from Rawalpindi to Islamabad, Another bridge will be constructed on Kashmir Highway, he added. “During the construction of these bridges traffic will be diverted to loops and slip roads of the interchange and one side of Islamabad Highway and Kashmir Highway will be closed for traffic,” he said.In the third phase, a bridge will be constructed over the road from Islamabad to Rawalpindi and the other side of highway will be opened for traffic along loops and slips roads, said Karim.

The interchange comprises three loops and four slip roads having a length of 10 kilometres, he said.We have consulted the ITP to make the traffic diversion plan smooth and workable, said Karim. The consultant would soon install traffic signals, signboards and digital screens displaying alternate routes and diversions on all main routes of the federal capital, he added. He said that the motorists would also be urged to use existing alternative roads to avoid congestion on the project site.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Muhammad Zubair Hashmi said that Zero Point Intersection would be made signal-free within a week and hoped that it would also work during the construction of project.

Railways Waiting for Govt Go-ahead on KCR Survey

KARACHI: The Pakistan Railways (PR) has made all arrangements for an environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the proposed Karachi Circular Railway (KCR), Daily Times learnt on Wednesday. EIAs are mandatory for all mega projects.“We are waiting for the federal government to award the contract for the EIA,” said a senior official of the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) on condition of anonymity.

The revived KCR will cater about 0.7 million passengers from 23 different stations of industrial, commercial and residential areas of the city. It is 50 kilometers long, comprises three zones and will pass through 21 underpasses and bridges. The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) will sponsor the project and the Japanese government will provide a loan of $872 million.

In the first phase, a track will be constructed from the city station to Landhi and the two lines will run parallel to the main railway tracks.

In the second phase, a track will be constructed from Drigh Road station and after crossing Shahrah-e-Faisal it will pass Gulistan-e-Johar, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Liaquatabad, Nazimabad, SITE, Baldia, Lyari, Mithadar and will finally touch the Karachi city station.

In the third phase a line will spread from Drigh Road station to the Jinnah International Airport. “Karachi is the largest urban center of Pakistan but does not have a proper transport system which causes congestion, pollution and accidents,” he added. The KCR was functional in 1964 and 1970 but due to a low number of trains and lack of investment it was closed. A plan for a mass transit system for the city has been under consideration since 1976, but for various reasons the project has been kept on hold.

When KCR Project Director Aijaz Hussain Khilji was contacted for details on the project, he said that he was out of the city but he would not have issued a statement anyway because of restrictions from by the Railways ministry. Answering a query about the slum settlements in the route of the KCR, he said that there are no land issues for KCR.

According to Railway laws, 100 feet from either side of the railway track must be remain vacant, said Pakistan Railway Karachi Divisional Engineer, Noor Al Din. “However, slums are spread over a large area owned by the Pakistan Railways and some have even come 60 feet close to the railway track,” he said. “But I have no idea how the KCR administration will resolve the matter as I am not related to that department.”

ADB Pledges $ 6million for Lahore Mass Transit Project

FAISALABAD (April 29 2008): Asian Development Bank will provide six million dollars from the Asian Development Fund for Lahore rapid mass transit system, while the Punjab government will provide 1.5 million dollars from its resources to launch the second phase of the project, which will be completed and commissioned by December.

According to official sources, the ADB has agreed to provide 150,000 dollars from its Technical Assistance Special Fund to launch the first phase of Lahore rapid mass transit system, which will be completed in July. The ADB sources mentioned that the project, on completion, would improve the Labourites quality of life.

The first phase of the project include project design and financing agreed upon by the Pakistan government and the ADB, detailed structure and terms of the transaction, pre-qualification and bidding documents for transaction, contract award, and negotiations with the lenders.

The ADB sources said that the expected impact of the first phase would be the initiation of a long-term transport system investment programme that would enable Lahore to make a greater contribution to national development. The ADB sources explained that the transaction advisory work would be carried out in the following three phases - preparation, implementation, and negotiation.

During the preparation phase, the transaction advisor would carry out technical and legal aspects, design the detailed structure and terms of the transaction market the transaction with potential investors and develop pre-qualification and bidding documents as well as the necessary contracts.

During the implementation stage, the transaction advisor would assist the government in obtaining any approvals and permits required, pre-qualifying potential investors, carrying out the bidding process, evaluating proposals, awarding the contract and holding negotiations, with the lenders. During the negotiation, the transaction advisor would support the government in winning the bidder to reach financial closure, official sources said.

Courtesy: business Recorder

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The following link at the ADB web site do provide more information

http://www.adb.org/Documents/ADBBO/PPTA/40573012.ASP

Naveed ask FBR to Consider Relief on CNG Buses

ISLAMABAD (May 21 2008): Finance Minister Naveed Qamar has directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to examine tax relief measures for encouraging CNG buses and vehicles with the aim to promote mass transportation.



The mass transportation system covers a wide range of areas including sky trains, trams, underground railways, light trains, circular trams etc available in different countries. Incentives to encourage such systems in major cities of Pakistan would make general public happy, sources said.

Only 60 Cabs for 8 Million Lahoris: Where Have all the Taxicabs Gone?

LAHORE: There are roughly only five-dozen registered taxis in the city, Regional Transport Authority (RTA) Secretary Chaudhry Iqbal told Daily Times on Friday.Iqbal admitted that the figure was very low, especially when compared to the number rickshaws – at least 60,000 of them are registered.

(A Wonderful Cab Service in Hong Kong)

He said that tens of thousands of ‘Yellow Cabs’ had been imported in the country during Nawaz Sharif’s previous government, but most people converted the cabs to private use after paying the instalments. He said the scheme had been dumped for this reason. He said several companies had announced that they would start cab services in the city, but nothing had been done so far.

The government allowed the duty free import of at least 300 Black Cabs from the UK in 2006 and the Tourism Development Corporation of Punjab (TDCP) announced to begin a radio cab service with at least 50 cabs in 2003, but the service has still not been launched.Talking to Daily Times, several Lahoris and tourists complained about the lack of taxicabs in the city, saying that Lahore is the only city in the world where cabs are rare commodities.

They also say that other major cities of the country, including Islamabad and Karachi have more taxis than rickshaws for public transport. People who do not have private vehicles and who do not wish to use public transport have rickshaws as their only option for intra-city transport. The only place in the city where cabs are easily available is the airport.The government has made several announcements regarding the initiation of cabs including the UK-based Black Cab service in major cities of the country, including Lahore, but no development has been made in this regard so far.

“I have travelled through many countries including places like Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and Dhaka, Bangladesh, and found taxis readily available everywhere in the world, except in Lahore,” Steve, Canadian rights activist and tourist, told Daily Times. He said he did not feel comfortable in rickshaws and felt that people risked their lives travelling in such vehicles. “People put their lives at risk travelling in the virtually exposed three-wheeler, which is mostly driven by untrained people,” he said.

Talking to Daily Times, Siddique Ahmad, a Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) student, said that students wanted to travel in taxicabs, but could not because of the unavailability of the service. He said, “Several rickshaws wait for customers outside LUMS every day, but no cabs have every been seen there.” afnan khan