Transporters refuse to ply buses and wagons

Rawalpindi : The local and long route transporters on Tuesday refused to bring their transport on roads saying government was only building castles in the air and situation was not convenient for them.

Neither Metro Bus Service (MBS) nor local transport will come on roads even on Eid days in this regard.

The local administration failed to make the transporters ply buses and wagons with proper SOPs. The local administration is only doing paper work to handle all issues including transport issue. Over 200,000 people are dependent on public transports but government in looking at the whole drama with closed eyes.

Muthidda Transport Welfare Association (MTWA) President Malik Mehboob told ‘The News’ that they will not bring buses and wagons on roads. “How could we ply transport on loss? How could we ply empty buses and wagons,” he bemoaned. “Punjab government has asked to decrease fares by 20 per cent and also follow the proper SOPs by allowing a single passenger on two seats. It is not possible for us,” he said. “We could not even manage the salaries of drivers and conductors if we follow the Punjab government SOPs,” he said.

District Regional Transport Authority (DRTA) Secretary Mehar Ghulam Abbas said, “We are fully trying to get the transporters ready to ply their buses, mini-buses and wagons. It will be necessary to follow all SOPs of Punjab government in this regard, he said. He said that we will never compromise on SOPs.”