Rawalpindi: Finally, the metro buses have started plying in Rawalpindi and Islamabad on Tuesday. After 22 days, the first bus appeared from the Saddar station at 6:00am going to Islamabad with dozens of commuters.
According to the Metro Bus Authority (MBA), metro buses will not stop at the Faizabad station as it was damaged badly during the sit-in protest. "We have started its repair and renovation work, which will be completed soon," the MBA claimed. Buses will stop at Faizabad as per routine in a couple of days. According to estimates, Rawalpindi's population is touching two million. Majority of people rely on the Metro Bus Service (MBS) for their journey to Islamabad. The public transport system of the twin cities is woefully inadequate and without any plan. A large chunk of Rawalpindi's population commutes to Islamabad for work, education or business. People are hard pressed for transportation options since there aren't many. In the absence of Metro, all commuters, women in particular, faced immense inconvenience before the introduction of the MBS in general and in ‘dharna’ days in particular.
Deputy Commissioner (DC), Rawalpindi Talat Gondal and high ranking police officials visited the city areas on Tuesday. Talking to 'The News', people from different walks of life said that suspension of the bus service for several days created immense hardships for public of twin cities. The government should find a solution that this mode of transport is never disrupted under any dharna, protest or agitation. More than 150,000 commuters travel comfortably and safely between the twin cities. This service is particularly a boon for women, most of whom are unescorted.
The civic authorities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad are busy in getting all areas around Faziabad cleansed of the huge soil and other dirt left by the protesters. There were garbage lifting vehicles and water tankers to clean the Faizabad area. The Rawalpindi Municipal League (RML) Chairman Changez Bhatti told 'The News' that sanitary workers of Rawalpindi and Islamabad are cleaning the Faizabad areas. The sanitation staff is continuously lifting garbage from Faizabad. They are trying their best to finish the job soon.
The metro bus project is providing an efficient and respectable transportation facility to the citizens along with several tangible and intangible benefits. Though the government of Punjab is always under criticism for providing such a huge percentage of subsidy but the economic benefits associated with this project make it viable in the long run.
This project has been designed, as per Metro officials, for a period of approximately 12-15 years and acts as a forerunner. People benefiting from this service have expressed a tremendous amount of satisfaction over this project. All educational institutions throughout province including Rawalpindi will open on Wednesday (today).
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