30 e-buses arrive in Islamabad today

Islamabad: The electric buses imported from China which will start arriving in Islamabad today (Tuesday) will be run on two feeder routes of Metro Bus Service.

A meeting chaired by CDA Chairman Muhammad Ali Randhawa was informed that apprised that first batch of 30 electric buses will start reaching the federal capital today. Initially, the buses will be run on two feeder routes. Feeder routes 7 starting from National University of Science and Technology (Nust) will end at Metro Bus stop of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).

Feeder 4 starting from PIMS will end at Bari Imam/Quaid-e-Azam University while bus service will be available from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.. Some deserving segments of society including disabled people and students will get subsidy in fare. It may be pointed out here that a meeting which was held the other day was informed that 30 out of total 160 buses arrived in Karachi had been sent to Islamabad while the second batch of 70 buses will reach shortly.

The charging point where 12 buses could be charged simultaneously has been established at Jinnah Convention Centre. The bus depot to park buses is being established at Sector H-9. The authority has also fixed bus fare at Rs50 per person.

Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner Islamabad, Irfan Nawaz Memon, has approved the reduction in public transport fares in response to the recent drop in petroleum prices. Starting today, fares for routes longer than 30 kilometres will see a Rs10 decrease. This change aims to provide relief to daily travellers and reflects the transport union’s agreement to the fare cut, said the ICT Administration spokesman.

To ensure transparency and compliance, all public transport vehicles are now required to display their lease deeds prominently on their front screens. This move will help passengers verify that the vehicles are operating under the new fare structure. The transport union has pledged full support for this fare reduction initiative.

They assured the authorities of their cooperation in implementing the new fares across all public transport services in the city. The district administration has warned that strict action will be taken against any vehicle operators who do not comply with the new fare regulations. To enforce this, assistant commissioners have been instructed to start fare inspections.

This measure is intended to ensure that all transport services adhere to the reduced fare rates and that passengers benefit from the lower costs. Commuters are encouraged to report any non-compliance to the authorities to help maintain fair practices in public transport. The city’s efforts aim to ease the financial burden on daily travellers and ensure fair pricing in public transport services.