ISLAMABAD: Over 11,000 passengers use the Orange Line Metro Bus Service everyday to get to their respective destinations.

This figure was highlighted in a performance report of the project prepared by the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

According to the report, 11,464 passengers travel daily on the route, with Faiz Ahmed Faiz junction in H-9 - which was included in the route to facilitate students - being the busiest and Mauve Area stop used the least.

During a meeting at the CDA headquarters, data on the average ridership of the bus service was analysed and the civic agency officials expressed their satisfaction.

Identifies Faiz Ahmed Faiz junction as busiest, Mauve Area stop the least used

They were informed that the daily passenger load for 15 buses was 11,464 per day so on an average, 30 passengers travelled in one bus at a time.

The officials were also told that about 1,746 passengers (per day) came to the Faiz junction.

According to a statement, the highest number of passengers (May 23) was found to be over 16,000. The officials observed that with time, the number of people, who used the service, was increasing.

It is good that more and more people are using the facility, CDA officials said, adding that with the launch of Green and Blue Line services, which are supposed to be operated from Bhara Kahu and Rawat, connectivity between various areas of the capital would increase.

Not only will this reduce traffic congestion but also help cut down air pollution in the city, the officials said.

Moreover, participants of the meeting were informed that buses are likely to reach Islamabad from Karachi by the end of this week. Apart from buses for the Orange Line service, buses for the Blue and Green Line services will also reach the capital.

It is worth mentioning here that the project remained shelved for almost four years but Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, after taking charge, visited the project site and directed officials to make the service functional at the earliest.

On April 16, a trial run of the buses was started and then free service was provided to citizens during the month of Ramazan.

According to details, 30 buses will be operated on the Orange Line, which was a project of the National Highway Authority (NHA). The route for this service is 25.6km long and has seven stations and one platform(near Islamabad Airport).

Initially, the authority, under an arrangement with Punjab Masstransit Authority (PMA), arranged 15 buses for the service until the buses originally purchased from China arrived.

Arrival of the buses was delayed due to a lockdown in the port city of Shanghai. However, now that these buses had been transported to Karachi, the other 15 buses will be repatriated to the PMA.

It is estimated that 25,000 to 26,000 passengers will commute daily on this route.

Published in Dawn, May 30th, 2022