AFFORDABLE public transport and roads form the backbone of any economy. Not only do such fundamental services lead to an increase in productivity, they tend to act as equalisers in societies seeped in class and gender inequalities. There are also environmental and public health benefits of having fewer private vehicles on the roads, leading to a reduction in carbon emissions and congestion. But despite all these economic, social and environmental arguments for greater investment in public transport — and despite the reality of an ever-expanding population — the sector has been largely neglected in Pakistan. While Punjab has been able to develop proficient urban transit systems — primarily in the cities of Lahore and Multan — the other provinces have lagged behind. And time and again, we have seen how development projects and the provision of necessary services come to a halt with interruptions in governance. For instance, the Islamabad metro bus service was supposed to extend to the New Islamabad International Airport, but this plan has been put on hold since the PTI government came to power.

There is petty politics, and then there is political hubris, which is perhaps best illustrated in the case of the Peshawar Bus Rapid Transit project. The ambitious venture was announced one year before the general elections. However, from the beginning, the Peshawar BRT has been mired in controversy. Over two years and several design changes later, billions of rupees have been borrowed, hundreds of trees hacked, and there is still no sign of the project nearing its completion. The mismanagement of funds has also led to accusations of corruption, with the Peshawar High Court directing the FIA to carry out investigations.

Then there is the tragedy of Karachi. Residents of the metropolis had been told they would have their own mass transit system as part of a plan conceived by the Japan International Cooperation Agency in 2012. Seven years later, however, the plan is a non-starter, and the city is still waiting for even one of those four colour-coded bus routes to be completed, or the defunct Karachi Circular Railway to be revived. Instead, the roads that were dug up to make way for the Green Line have been abandoned midway. Despite housing over 14m people and opening its doors to people from all over the country and beyond, and despite millions of dollars pouring in from foreign donors, it is nothing short of a travesty that the city does not have a single decent public transport system running, even with the federal government stepping in. The ever-enterprising private sector — ride-hailing services, rickshaws, buses — have rushed in to fill the gap, but many cannot afford the daily commuting expenses. Unfortunately, the country’s economic powerhouse remains an afterthought to its leaders, especially the provincial government.

Published in Dawn, December 26th, 2019