KARACHI, March 10: City Nazim Niamatullah Khan has set up a committee and assigned it the task of suggesting ways and means to make the city’s Urban Transport Scheme (UTS) more effective towards providing maximum possible relief to commuters.

He also urged the city government’s transport and communication department to give priority to inducting more buses in the UTS, saying that the introduction of jumbo-sized air-conditioned and CNG buses had brought considerable relief to commuters.

The nazim was presiding over a meeting held here on Thursday to discuss the city’s transport problem. DCO Fazalur Rehman, DG of Mass Transit department Malik Zaheerul Islam, EDO Transport Dr Tahir Soomro and City Nazim’s representative Mohammad Tufail were among those who attended the meeting.

Mr Khan asked the transport department to take immediate measures for further improvement in the UTS operation system and maintain a close liaison with the operators of the UTS buses with an aim of providing relief to commuters.

He asked members of the newly-formed committee to submit its detailed report to him within a week.

The committee comprises EDO Transport (chairman), DIG Traffic, DO Public Transport, city nazim’s coordinator for transport, and representatives of bus- owners.

At the outset, the meeting discussed the hardships being faced by people due to the continued movement of smoke-emitting and obsolete buses and minibuses on city roads.