Frantic stopping of public transport

All public transport vehicles stop to pick up and drop off passengers at places of their own choice, thus putting the passengers at risk.

“If you have missed your morning fitness exercise and you reside in Pindi, don’t sweat. Just try to get into any public transport, be it a wagon, a flying coach or a Suzuki van, at any Pindi bus stop during rush hours. You will do enough jogging and sweating to last the entire day,” says Ashiq Hussain.

“Owing to the absence of proper public transport stops, passengers in areas such as Chungi No. 22, Saddar, Jhandaha Cheechy, Rahimabad, Gulzar-e-Quaid, Shah Khalid Colony, Fauji Tower, Chandni Chowk, National Market, Kali Tanki, Haidery Chowk, College Chowk, Siddique Chowk, National Bank and Pindora Chungi route, are put to severe hardship,” says Rehan Ali.

Ali Akber Naqvi says: “It is difficult to predict where exactly the public transport will stop. Every time a wagon arrives, passengers, irrespective of their age, run after it, risking their lives on the busy main road. Wagon drivers seldom care about the travelers’ safety and just drive away. Incidents of women and aged persons getting hurt while boarding buses are common here.”

“As there is no designated place even like a muddy one of Khanna Pul for the public transport to stop, all public transport vehicles come to a halt at the same place on either side of the road. This causes traffic snarls, especially during morning and evening peak hours,” says Alijah Zaidi.

“Lack of an enquiry counter and name boards specifying public transport routes only adds to the confusion. Passengers, especially those who are new to the city, have to depend on drivers and conductors to guide them to board the right vehicle. A simple lapse on the part of the passenger and he might land up in an unknown area of the city,” says Hamayat Hussain.

Iffat Rizvi says: “Passengers living on Shahrah-e-Faisal Avenue generally known as Airport Link Road have to walk up to other localities’ stop to get Islamabad transport. The public transport stops here are of little use as a very small number of wagons ply from these points despite the great demand for public transport.”

“Catching a wagon or Suzuki is too challenging a task. Nowhere is it specified as to where they would stop and hence they stop everywhere. We have to run after them amidst heavy traffic, risking our lives,” says Shaiq Hasan.

“On many roads of the city there is no shelter for passengers to wait. Civic authority and traffic police never seem to be bothered about passengers’ problems and have no time to solve them,” says Haider Imam.