QUETTA: A fleet of eight eco-friendly buses was launched in Quetta on Monday, making it the government’s first-ever inter-city bus service.

The buses, part of the Green Bus Service, will be operated on a public private partnership (PPP) mode.

The service was inaugurated on Monday not by a minister or bureaucrat but by a common man who was invited to cut the ribbon by Chief Minister Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo.

The ceremony, attended by CM’s Adviser on Transport Malik Naeem Bazai, Chief Secretary Abdul Aziz Uqaili and other officials, was held in the Takatu area near Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences (BUITEMS).

Mr Uqaili said the government has initially purchased eight buses to provide modern travelling facilities to the people of Quetta. Soon, the number would be increased to 20 to cover more routes in the provincial capital.

Locals hail project, want it expanded to more areas

He said the project was initiated during the tenure of former chief minister Jam Kamal Khan Alyani.

Initially, the buses would ply between BUITEMS and Balochistan University covering a distance of 18.7km with 18 stops.

“We have a plan to expand the service to other towns and cities of Balochistan in future,” the chief secretary added.

He said the air condition buses will have designated seats for disabled persons and women and each bus has a capacity of 30 passengers.

The fare for one-side has been fixed at Rs30, which is lower than Rs50 charged by private transporters.

Mr Bazai, the CM’s advisor, said private transporters who were plying dilapidated buses on different rent routes were opposing the new service.

He added the government was negotiating with them to address their reservations about the Green Bus Service. “The government has planned to replace the old buses by providing new buses to private transporters.”

The residents, deprived of a reliable mass transit system for long, have hailed the new bus service.

Abdul Rasheed, 36, working with a private hospital, said the government’s initiative was commendable.

He added that certain areas of the city were ignored and hoped the service would be expanded to routes like Sariab, Qambrani Road, Sabzal Road and Nawa Killi.

“The majority of the working class lives in these areas and the purpose of public transport is to benefit the working class”.

Abdul Hameed, another resident, questioned why private transporters were opposing a service that will benefit people.The transporters should either improve their services or welcome these measures, he added.

Published in Dawn, July 18th, 2023