ISLAMABAD: Though the Islamabad International Airport (IIA) has been operational for about a year, the government is still undecided about launching the metro bus service from Peshawar Mor to the new airport.

Sources in the National Highway Authority (NHA), which is executing the metro track project, told Dawn that the civil work was almost complete and by June this year the electrical and mechanical work would also be ready.

The NHA is constructing the 25.6-kilometre-long track from Peshawar Mor to the IIA worth Rs16 billion.

Civil work on 25.6km track from Peshawar Mor is almost complete while electrical and mechanical work will be ready by June, NHA officials say

The sources said NHA was only constructing the track and had nothing to do with operation of the buses.

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) was earlier asked by the NHA to procure buses for the service but the civic agency refused to take responsibility.

The Punjab Metro Bus Authority (PMBA) last year also refused to operate the service after terming it financially nonviable.

The sources, however, said Prime Minister Office was following the project and soon a decision would be made by the government.

They said it was likely that the PMBA would be asked to run the bus service as it had the expertise.

The sources said last month a meeting was held at the Prime Minister Office which was chaired by Additional Secretary Usman Bajwa in which various options were discussed.

“I guess, the PMBA will be asked for this project but a final decision is yet to be taken,” said a senior officer of the federal government.

On Oct 17 last year, the NHA had written to the CDA telling it to procure buses for the metro bus service on the basis of a decision taken by former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. But the CDA refused.

Sources in the CDA said a couple of week ago the civic agency also wrote a letter to the PM office informing them that it had no expertise to run the bus service.

In February last year, the then prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had taken notice of the uncertainty regarding the operation of the metro bus service from Peshawar Mor to the IIA.

He had directed the NHA to float a request for proposals and start the tendering process immediately. The successful bidder would be dealt with by a company to be incorporated by the CDA.

Mr Abbasi had also directed that the tender documents and the request for proposals should explicitly mention that all contracts awarded would subsequently be novated to a successor company to be incorporated by the CDA for the operation and maintenance of the bus service.

But nothing happened so far as NHA and CDA decided not to get involved in the operation of buses.

The PMBA also in writing informed the previous government that it could not operate the service.

However, sources said the government was likely to approach the PMBA for starting the bus service.

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2019