Buses will cover dense areas of twin cities and complement Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro
After a decade-long wait in a meeting chaired by CDA Chairman Maroof Afzal, a water park at Shahdara along with a mass transport project that will cover capital in entirety was finally approved.
Shahdara is a popular picnic spot near Quaid-e-Azam University and Bara Kahu, Islamabad. People from twin cities love to cool themselves off at the water streams in the area. The civic authority also approved a project to further develop the picnic area and provide denizens with a water park, first of its kind in twin cities.
Immediately after Eid, the expression of interest will be invited by private firms to run buses along the six routes. Since November last year CDA announced to launch 22 feeder buses that’ll ply the routes around the capital and will connect far off areas with Islamabad-Rawalpindi Metro. Presently, the tenders will be invited from contractors for the following routes from Tarnol to Fatima Jinnah Park, from Bhara Khau to Marghazar Zoo, from Carriage factory to IJP station and from Rawat to Faisal Mosque.
It is important to mention here that Islamabad-Rawalpindi Metro does not cover many sectors and areas in the twin cities. These include G-6, G-7, G-10, G-11, G-12, G-13, G14, F-11, F-10, F-11, E-11, D-12, Tarnool, Bara Kahu and numerous societies. The buses will connect the metro bus to areas and will greatly benefit the citizens of Islamabad.
“I’ve been living in D-12 for the past four years; I previously lived in G-6. There is no public transport of any kind available in my sector. One can rarely find a taxi at times. The nearest hospital and petrol pumps are many kilometres away. In a case of an emergency, unavailability of transport is the difference between life and death. We have been hearing for many years of a public transport initiative, but have seen little in this direction. I request high-ups to take action in this regard,” said Talha Ahmed, a resident of D-12, a newly established section of Islamabad.