LAHORE: The existing fleet of 64 articulated buses plying at the 27km long track of the Lahore Metro Bus System (Green Line) is set to be replaced with a new one within the next couple of months as the government signed on Thursday an agreement with a private firm.
The firm succeeded in winning the procurement, operations and maintenance (POM) contract for being the lowest bidder.
The government also signed agreement with another company for automated fare collection system (AFCS), according to an official source.
“Three companies were in race for the POM contract. One gave bid of Rs355 (per km) followed by the two others that gave Rs324 and Rs304 per km. So the last one, which is already running Speedo buses in Multan, won the project for being the lowest bidder. And the contract was awarded to it last week,” the official told Dawn. “Finally, it was signed on Thursday,” he added.
The official said the second agreement was signed for automated fare collection with another company. Under this agreement, the company would introduce a new automated system for fare collection, the official said. Both contracts POM and AFCS had been signed in September 2012 -- the time when the metro bus service (Gajjumata to Shahdara) was under construction on a fast track jointly by the Traffic Engineering and Transport Planning Agency (Tepa) and the Lahore Development Authority.
In December 2012, the project was successfully completed within a shortest period of 11 months and finally it was launched in February 2013 just three months before the May 2013 general election. The project was inaugurated jointly by the then Turkish Deputy Premier, Bekir Bozdag, and then CM Shahbaz Sharif in the presence of PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif and several ambassadors.
“Actually the contracts duration was for eight years which ended in December this year. All the 64 articulated buses, each 18 meters in length, have completed their age and are required to be replaced. Similarly, the automated fare collection system is also required to be replaced. That is why the bidding process was initiated to outsource POM and AFCS,” the official explained.
He said the specification of buses would remain same as there would be no change in the seating capacity, length, announcement, colour scheme etc. “Only a green line will be added to the colour scheme. However, the model / brand of the buses would be different from the ones plying at the moment,” he added.
Meanwhile, Punjab Mass Transit Authority (PMTA) chief Sibtain, on behalf of the Punjab government, and representatives of the firms signed agreements. “I hope that signing of agreements will help us improve the metro bus service,” said Transport Minister Jahanzeb Khan Khitchi while speaking on the occasion.
He said vast investment opportunities were available in transport and other sectors and investors should take full benefit of the investment-friendly policies of the Punjab government. He maintained that merit-based transparent policies had benefited the national kitty and a new example had been set by saving billions of rupees in the bidding for metro bus service contracts.
“The POM bid was 20 per cent less than the previous one and helped save Rs3 billion,” he claimed.
Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2020