Metro Bus project is of entire Pakistan: Shahbaz

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif finally inaugurated the much-trumpeted Metro Bus Project (MBP) in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, giving the people a good, better, improved and modern transport facility and relieving them of tension faced at the hands of public transporters.
Addressing the inaugural ceremony at the Jinnah Convention Center, Islamabad on Thursday, the chief minister said the Metro Bus Project was of international standard.“This is not the project of twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad but of the entire country.”
He said though the estimated cost of the project was Rs39 billion, however, the authorities concerned succeeded in completing it with at a cost of Rs37 billion thus saving sufficient amount of Rs2 billion.
“It is a great achievement and the launch of the metro bus services in the twin cities is an historic day in the transport sector,” he said.Shahbaz Sharif said that the Metro Bus Project was to be completed in 9 months but due to certain reasons and addition of components, it was delayed by 5 months. “However, with full determination and commitment, we managed to complete the task finally,” he said.
Similarly, the chief minister informed that a large segment of people belonging to all class including women, children, students, doctors, traders, middle, lower and higher class people could benefit from the service which was equipped with all modern facilities including air conditioner, heater, cameras, Wi-Fi and comfortable seats.
The people could now travel in metro buses with low fare and reach their destination within 50 minutes from Mall Road, Rawalpindi to Pakistan Secretariat, Islamabad. The students could reach their colleges and schools in 15 to 20 minutes and patients could reach hospitals in 20 minutes falling in the parameters of the project.
Under the project, 14 underpasses, equal number of flyovers and a number of pedestrian bridges have been established. Moreover, the students and other people could benefit Wi-Fi facilities in buses and at metro bus terminals which had been set up on modern lines, presenting a beautiful look, he said.
Similarly, while implementing the project, his government also carpeted and constructed service roads from Mall Road to Islamabad section in cooperation with the federal government.He appreciated the efforts of the federal government in extending its full cooperation for the implementation of the project which also included allocation of funds and logistic support. He thanked Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for showing his keen and kind gesture in the implementation of MBP. He claimed that it was the idea of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to launch metro bus service in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
Concluding his remarks, Shahbaz Sharif claimed that now the Punjab government had relieved the public of the twin cities of the hardships and troubles at the hands of the public transporters who were overcharging and not providing good transport services like wagons, coasters and Hilux vehicles.
While enforcing the project, the Punjab government also opened new avenues of job opportunities while forming Metro Bus Authority and recruited hundreds of unemployed people in this department.