Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro finally hits the track

• PM inaugurates Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro Bus Service, announces Metro Bus and Green Line for Multan and Karachi
• Rs 45b project, equipped with modern facilities including Wi-fi, to facilitate 150,000 commuters daily

At an impressive ceremony held at the Jinnah Convention Centre in Islamabad on Thursday afternoon, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif inaugurated Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro Bus Service (MBS) to provide hassle free, comfortable and economical travelling facility to the residents of the twin cities.

The ceremony was attended by provincial governors and chief ministers of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, federal ministers, political leaders, parliamentarians, diplomats, senior officials and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) workers from Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

Speaking on the occasion, PM Sharif termed the project a “symbol of changing Pakistan”. He pointed out that in the past, developmental projects took decades to complete during which their cost escalated by several times, however this culture had now come to an end. He said the successful implementation of state-of-the-art MBS in a short time and within the original cost was a “testimony of change for the better”.

The premier congratulated the Punjab chief minister for implementing the project in the shortest possible time and in a transparent manner. “No one can raise finger over its transparency,” he added.

The prime minister announced that the federal government would bring MBS to Karachi and Multan and offered services of the federal government to KP and Balochistan chief ministers for similar facilities in their provinces. He said the federal government was also ready to help implement MBS in Peshawar.

Sharif said his government had launched a number of developmental projects and MBS was just one aspect of these initiatives. He announced that electricity shortage would be eliminated during his remaining tenure of three years and the tariff of electricity would also be brought down. He said the government had already passed on the relief to the common man by reducing oil prices and ultimately, the cost of electricity had also come down by Rs 5.50 per unit.

The prime minister said a motorway from Khunjerab to Gwadar was to be constructed which would pass through KP and Balochistan. He thanked the political leadership of the country for giving ownership to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

The prime minister appreciated all those who contributed to implementation of the Rawalpindi-Islamabad MBS and announced prize of Rs 50 million for them. He also appreciated the efforts of Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Malik Baloch for his efforts to restore peace in the province and carrying out development projects.

Later on, Sharif visited Pak Secretariat bus station of MBS. He also had a ride of the bus to see for himself the facilities being offered to passengers and inspect the newly-constructed track.

Addressing on the occasion, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said MBS was undoubtedly “one of the best developmental projects of the world”. He said originally Rs 44 billion were allocated for the project and the cost also included the construction of Rs 5 billion Peshawar Morr, which was not strictly a part of the MBS. “If five billion rupees are deduced, the cost of MBS comes to Rs 39 billion. Even from this amount, we saved Rs 2 billion and spent on other facilities and the adjacent road,” he said.

The chief minister said there are 14 under-passes and 14 pedestrian flyovers on the MBS route. There were also 32-kilometre-long footpaths on both sides of the track and 45-kilometre-long drains besides 23 kilometres of service roads.

SALIENT FEATURES:

The dedicated 23-kilometre-long signal-free track has been constructed between Islamabad Secretariat and Rawalpindi Saddar with 24 stations, 10 in Rawalpindi and 14 in the federal capital, equipped with modern facilities to facilitate the commuters of twin cities. These stations have modern facilities such as computerised ticketing system, escalators and elevators for special persons and Wi-Fi.

Project Director and Rawalpindi Commissioner Zahid Saeed gave a briefing about concept and implementation of the project and salient features of the bus service.

Constructed in 14 months, the project’s total cost is Rs 44.84 billion, including an interchange at Peshawar Morr at a cost of five billion rupees. Rawalpindi portion of 8.6-kilometre road is overhead track.

In all, 68 buses have started operating on the route and each bus has a capacity of 150 passengers. Moreover, around 150,000 commuters will benefit from this service daily.