PESHAWAR: The TransPeshawar company on Wednesday began registration of the public transport vehicles plying the Bus Rapid Transport route for the payment of compensation to their owners as they will not be allowed to operate after the bus service is launched.

Currently, over 650 buses, minibuses and wagons operate on the route.

The TransPeshawar, which was set up by the government to operate the BRT service, said in a statement that it had established facilitation desks for owners and drivers of such buses and wagons in its main offices and major bus stops at Kamboh Adda and General Bus Stand, in Hayatabad Phase-VI and Karkhano Market, and on Kohat Road.

It said the desks were manned with staff members, who would provide necessary enlistment information and forms from April 10 to May 10.

The company said after the BRT service was launched, the decades old buses and vans without fitness certificates wouldn’t be allowed to operate for being unsafe and polluting environment.

It added that some of those vehicles weren’t driven by qualified persons.

The TransPeshawar said the provincial government was providing an excellent opportunity to bus and wagon owners to purchase those vehicles.

“This is a great opportunity for buses, wagons and minibuses to enlist their vehicles. We will not only provide them with compensation up to Rs1.5 million but they will also get monthly income of around Rs30,000 each. The vehicles are evaluated on the basis of availability of original documents, model of vehicle, possession of appropriate route permit and physical condition of vehicle,” it said.

The company said the Peshawar BRT would also hire public service vehicle licence holding drivers and conductors besides staff for ticketing, repair, maintenance, security and cleaning.

It, however, the employees working in the local transport industry for years in Peshawar would be preferred for those jobs.

The TransPeshawar said the lists of those employees would be handed over to vendors selected to operate BRT, who would prefer enlisted workers for job opportunities.

“These workers will be given remuneration in line with the labour laws,” it said.

The company said the applicants should submit filled forms to the respective facilitation desks by May 10.

A TransPeshawar official said the company would compensate over 600 buses and wagons but they didn’t include off-corridor ones.

“Whatever happens beyond the BRT corridor, we’re not entertaining that,” he said.

Published in Dawn, April 11th, 2019