Where’s the bus?

The transportation system of Karachi is probably the worst among all cities. The shortage of buses in the city continues to take a toll on the lives of people who wait at bus stops for hours to embark on a bus that will take them to their desired destination. On the other hand, buses that are currently working across the city are of a poor quality with no safety standards. The authorities concerned must pay attention to this problem. The majority of the residents of Karachi rely on buses to commute to and from their workplace. This is because many people do not own personal cars or bikes and cannot afford high fares of taxis and rickshaws.

Although the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) said in the past that an additional 9,000 buses are required to fill the shortfall, these requests went unheeded. A congested city like Karachi deserves a proper transportation system. The problem of the shortage of buses is the one which needs the immediate attention of the authorities. In this regard, the revival of train service around the city may serve as an initial response to the city’s transport problems. Moreover, the number of local buses should be increased on an immediate basis. It is time the Sindh government took concrete steps to deal with this problem.

Syed Shayan Ahmed ( Karachi )