Recent press reports suggest that that a summary has been placed before the federal cabinet for final approval regarding the revival of the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR). This is a welcome news.

However, as importance is given to the technical and financial aspects of the project, it is of critical importance that due consideration is accorded to the social and environmental ramifications of the project and adequate safeguards and mitigation strategies adopted. This article highlights some of the issues that merit consideration

The KCR was introduced in the city in 1964. The aim was to provide an alternative and cheap source of rapid urban public transport system for the people of Karachi. The project was completed in two phases.

In the first phase, the circular railway track was initiated from the Drigh Road Railway Station, located on the main railway line, routed through the urban localities of Liaquatabad, Nazimabad and concluded at the Wazir Mansion Railway Station at Lyari.

In the second phase, the track was extended from the Wazir Mansion and connected with the Karachi City Railway Station, located on the main railway line. Initially, the KCR was utilised only by the goods train service.

However, in 1969, when both the project phases were completed, it was opened for public use. The KCR schedule was formulated in such a way that travellers on the main railway service arriving in Karachi, whose inner city destinations included areas such as Liaquatabad, Nazimabad, SITE. etc., could link up with the KCR service.

Records show that till the late 70's and early 80's, the KCR was functioning as an extremely efficient and profitable enterprise. During that period, at an average, it was generating profits of upto Rs0.5 million per month.

However, during the past 15 years, the KCR service experienced a progressive decline, in terms of the state of infrastructure facilities and the overall running and management of the train service.

The KCR service was officially suspended by the Pakistan Railways on December 15, 1999. In the revitalisation plan presently being promoted, the existing 30 km KCR track will be rehabilitated and improved.

Some railway stations will be relocated, some closed, while a new railway station will also be built. The facilities / utility systems at the railway stations will be rehabilitated and improved.

Associated infrastructure such as footbridges, platforms, fencing, signalling systems will also be renovated / installed. Since it is proposed to run trips of KCR at 15 minutes intervals, the present level crossings are being considered to become redundant.

It is therefore proposed to build under passes and overheads, on the sites some of the existing level crossings. The remaining level crossings are to be closed. Scattered small and large scale encroachments exist all along the KCR corridor and at certain railway station sites.

Even though they may not hinder presently proposed infrastructure development schemes, they offer other problems and concerns which would need to be considered and mitigation strategies developed, to counter these concerns. For example, there is the issue of public safety.

It has been observed that regular movement of people takes place across the tracks, which are also at places used as dumping sites for the garbage generated in the surrounding areas and beyond.

The tracks would at the minimum need to be secured and isolated to guarantee public safety during KCR operation. This is particularly relevant in view of the fact that the KCR service is proposed to be run at 15-minute intervals.

The danger and potential for serious accidents and risks would nevertheless remain, as jumping the fence is considered only as a minor inconvenience. Even in the urbanised sections of the city, fences on road medians have not proven as a foolproof method of controlling hazardous human movement and steel fences have been known to be dislocated or simply bypassed by pedestrians jumping over them to cross roads.

In the typical 'kutchi abadis', children are known to be left mostly unattended during the day, which increases the risks of accidents. It would therefore be appropriate that consideration is made for a phased removal and relocation/resettlement programme after proper prioritisation of unauthorised settlements along the KCR corridor and relevant railway station sites.

Though in the absence of detailed engineering designs of the proposed underpasses, exact impact on the existing settlements habitation pattern cannot be accurately identified, nonetheless it is realistic to assume that significant levels of disruption if not actual relocation of existing human/commercial activities will take place.

Acceptability of such measures by the local people likely to be affected is suspect and detailed opinion surveys and greater disclosure of finalised plans is required to properly assess public views.

In addition, impact of such a development exercise on existing civic infrastructure/utility system of the area (sewage lines, drainage, gas, etc.) remains unexplored. A full blown Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) would be required to accurately assess all the possible related impacts, alternatives and mitigation strategies.

The proposed railway stations, particularly in the densely populated localities like Nazimabad, Liaquatabad and Gulshan-e-Iqbal are likely to attract much greater movement and presence of people, transport and small business enterprises in their immediate vicinity.

As bus routes are proposed to be integrated with the KCR stations, continued and heavy movement of such transport will be directed towards and from the railway stations. Experience shows that small hawkers / vendors would immediately be tempted to establish base in the area.

Such activities if not properly planned and regulated could adversely impact the already stressed social and environmental status of the surrounding localities, which are presently exhibiting evidence of congestion, land use violation and environmental stresses. The localities of Nazimabad, Liaquatabad, Gulshan, Lyari can be cited to illustrate these concerns.

Issues like parking space for buses / private cars, zoning for either accommodating/regulating hawkers/vendors, and other medium to large scale commercial enterprises or limiting or preventing such activities will have to be incorporated in the implementation procedures.

In the absence of such provisions, serious land use and zoning violations/encroachments are expected to take place and multiply, in addition to increased pollution levels due to greater generation of waste, higher noise levels and enhanced levels of atmospheric pollutants.

A terminal station is proposed to be established within the city. Construction/operation of a terminal station would result in an altered land use status for the area with the accompanying changes in its characteristics and profile.

The availability of supporting infrastructure/utility systems such as drainage facilities at the proposed sites has to be carefully evaluated. Public acceptability by local residents for a plan which is likely to increase pollution load in the area, lead to greater congestion, aesthetic impairment and lowering of land value while offering nothing in return like employment opportunities is highly unlikely.

The issue of unauthorised settlements within the corridor of the KCR would have to be tackled and resolved, better sooner than later. The corridor needs to be cleared and secured for public safety reasons and to ensure that future expansion / extension in the KCR network can be suitably accommodated.

It is therefore recommended that priority ranking be identified for removal of encroachments. A phased removal process is suggested. The ranking may be based on greater public safety risks, location of encroachments (such as at a railway station site) and future short-term/long-term expansion plans.

However, the removal of encroachments has to be linked with a proper and feasible resettlement plan for which provision of sites for resettlement have to be allocated and developed prior to the initiation of the removal process.

The entire removal/resettlement process has to be carried out with transparent and meaningful involvement of the affected communities and citizen groups to avoid the bad experiences of past city projects.

It is also suggested that the proposal of constructing certain underpasses at level crossing sites also be reviewed and reassessed in the light of the expected problems related to possible relocation of commercial/human settlements and civic infrastructure utilities.

Other expected impacts such as public safety concerns, non-availability of vertical height clearance for heavy vehicles and disruption in other modes of pedestrian movement also necessitate detailed review of existing plan and consideration of alternatives. In this regard, a full-blown EIA is also recommended.

In this connection, it may also prove useful to review the proposal of running the KCR trips at 15-minute intervals. It is uncertain whether the present public movement patterns and volume necessitate such a busy schedule for the KCR.

Reduction in the number of trips may also lead to the possibility of permanently closing certain problematic level crossings, instead of opting for costly and environmentally suspect measures like construction of underpasses and overheads.

The atmospheric pollution load in addition to very serious noise pollution concerns arising from a continuously running the KCR service through residential / commercial areas can be avoided with a more realistic KCR operation schedule. It is therefore recommended that this proposal be reviewed.

It is also suggested that further optional uses of KCR need to be taken into account to increase the viability and effectiveness of the project. In 1994, the then Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) had initiated a project, namely the Garbage Train Project, which proposed the collection and transportation of city solid waste via the KCR system to a landfill site at Dhabeji on the National Highway.

This project was proposed in view of the fact that the existing landfill sites at Gond Pass (Hub) and Jam Chakro (Surjani Town), due to the rapid spread of the city were now located within inhabited areas.

Thus a site at a safe distance from the city was required to build a new landfill site. About 5000 acres land of Dhabeji (50 km from the city) was acquired by KMC for the purpose and a connecting track was built at the site.

The mode of KCR for transportation of waste was proposed as transporting waste by buses was found to be a non-feasible option, both financially and operationally. This project, though terminated after two months of operation, can still be revived and integrated in the KCR Revitalisation Plan.

The KCR network at certain places like the Gilani Railway Station and Manghopir Railway Station could be used for linking with upcountry movement through main rail service, as was the case in the past. This would reduce the load at the Karachi City and Karachi Cantt Railway Stations.

The field observations, literature review, public consultation, undertaken so far for the project in various case studies/plans, all point towards the feasibility and sustainability of the KCR project. Also indicated is the urgency of implementing this project.

The KCR, in itself may not possess the capacity of acting as the prime mover of commuter traffic in Karachi. Nonetheless, it has a sound potential of linking up with other modes of regular and mass transit systems to provide sustainable, environment friendly, efficient and affordable means of transport for the citizens of Karachi.