RAWALPINDI: Metro Bus Authority will take over the command and control centre and bus stations of metro bus service on November 15.

This was stated by Commissioner Rawalpindi and Metro Bus Project Director Zahid Saeed while talking to Dawn.

“The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) will complete the construction work on metro bus command and control centre and 14 bus stations in Rawalpindi by November 15,” he said.

After taking over, the Metro Bus Authority would install elevator, escalator, security camera monitors and other equipment at the centre and bus stations, he said.

He said the Metro Bus Authority would only run the bus service but also handle other issues including security and providing ambulance service in case of an accident.

The commissioner said the work in many parts like Saddar, Liaquat Bagh, Committee Chowk, Faizabad, 6th Road and other areas would be completed by November mid.

Construction of bus stations in Islamabad under way

He said that seven-storey plaza was under construction in Saddar where two floors would be allocated for the command and control centre and the remaining for parking vehicles of passengers.

He said that total cost of the plaza was Rs440 million and it was being constructed on four kanals.

He said that the Metro Bus Authority would take at least two months for installation of the elevator and other equipment in the command and control centre.

He said the CCTV cameras would be installed on the elevated road and main route of the bus service and monitored from the command and control centre.

He said a total 83 elevators and escalators would be installed on the bus stations in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad from Saddar to Pakistan Secretariat.

The commissioner said the local administration was trying to acquire more land near the main bus stations for the construction of another parking plaza.

He said the parking plaza was being constructed at the starting point of the bus service in Saddar.

The commissioner said the construction work on the Islamabad section was in full swing. The RDA would hand over bus stations in Islamabad to Metro Bus Authority as soon as work on them is finished, he said.  

He said the pace of work on package five in Islamabad from Parade Lane to Pakistan Secretariat was slow due to political sit-ins.

He said the contractor had started the work but it would take time to pick up pace.

Replying to a question about Peshawar Interchange, he said the work was relatively slow due to some hurdles but the contractor had been asked to speed up the work.

“The work on the interchange is likely to be completed by January 2015, but the contractors had been given December 25 deadline as the Punjab government wants to complete the work within stipulated time frame,” he said.

Published in Dawn, November 1st , 2014