Terminals at Pirwadhai, Faizabad and Karachi Company connect twin cities to the rest of the country, but officials are least concerned towards facilitating commuters.
Pitiable condition of Pirwadhai, Faizabad and Karachi Company bus stands depict a picture of sheer negligence and ill-management by transporters and the misery of poor passengers, who have no other option but to bear the humiliation.
People at these bus stands are facing a number of problems due to the absence of waiting rooms, cleanliness and other basic facilities. No wonder, the most affected people are the women.
Aslam Sheikh, a Pirwadhai passenger, told APP that Pirwadhai is the busiest bus terminal, which connects the twin cities with the rest of the country through roads, but there is no proper shelter to protect the commuters from sunlight or rain. It was also observed that a number of commuters were sitting on muddy footpath, waiting for the vehicles.
It is not only the absence of waiting rooms but the stinking stagnant water, which accumulate in the vicinity, especially at Pirwadhai and Faizabad, is multiplying the problems of commuters.
The authorities have so far paid no attention to the faulty drainage system at the bus stands. Resultantly, overflowing sewage from gutters has become a common feature.
The increasing sanitation problems at the city bust stands is not only creating problems for the commuters but also badly affecting the beauty of the city.
Piles of garbage are clearly visible at the terminals, as there is no proper arrangement for cleaning the bus stands.
Like other problems, encroachments and haphazard parking of vehicles further aggravate the situation at the bus stands. A number of vendors have displayed different kinds of stalls which not only creating problems for pedestrians bust also cause traffic jam and road accidents.
Vendors sell wrist watches, caps, shirts, bags and small electronic items there. This also forces passengers to wait for the buses either on footpaths or on roads risking accidents.
Passengers have complained that the condition of these bus stands is getting worse and the concern authority should take some action for the improvement of these terminals.
A Capital Development Authority (CDA) official said not a single bus stand owner in the twin cities had obtained formal approval from the CDA or Rawalpindi Development Authority.
