RAWALPINDI: The Metro Bus Authority (MBA)’s plan to launch a shuttle service in Rawalpindi has hit snags after the city district government expressed its inability to arrange 35 kanals of land for the establishment of a bus depot and parking plaza.

For the start of the shuttle service on the direction of Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to transport passengers from different parts of the city to the nearby metro bus stations, the authority had sought the land in the city area.

In this regard, the authority had sent a formal request to the city government but the latter replied that it had no vacant land.

The city government suggested that the authority should buy a private land but it would also not be available in one piece.

After getting the directives, the CDGR finalised the routes for the shuttle service, including from Rawalpindi railway station, Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Chur Chowk, Pirwadhai Mor bus terminal and Soan bus terminal.

However, the MBA sought a piece of land for the bus depot to park more than 80 buses to be used in the shuttle service.

On the refusal of the CDGR, the Punjab government has decided to hold a meeting between the revenue officials and the MBA next week to resolve the matter.

A senior official of the CDGR told Dawn that passengers who wanted to use the metro buses would not be charged any fare on the shuttle service.

He said the shuttle service was supposed to be started in July but it was delayed due to the unavailability of land for the parking of the buses.

“The MBA also failed to procure new buses for the shuttle service,” he said.

The official said the government also wanted to construct parking plazas for motorcycles and cars along three metro bus stations.

“The commuters will park their vehicles in the parking plazas and travel on the metro buses between Rawalpindi and Islamabad.”

He said the CDGR had a vacant land adjacent to Liaquat Bagh but it was handed over to the Rawalpindi Municipal Waste Company.

He said the metro bus stations were constructed in congested areas along Murree Road where finding a vacant piece of land would be difficult for the local administration.

When contacted, District Coordination Officer (DCO) Sajid Zafar Dall admitted that the MBA had sought 35 kanals of land to start the shuttle service but there was no vacant land near the metro bus stations.

“We will arrange the land in small pieces in different areas if the Metro Bus Authority arranged funds.”

He said the MBA had started the process to procure 80 buses to use them in the shuttle service and the CDGR finalised 25 routes.

However, the unavailability of land delayed the project.

Published in Dawn, August 26th, 2015

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