Construction work on Red Line BRT project set to begin this month

The construction work on the Red Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is set to kick off on Karachi’s University Road this month.

On Tuesday, Karachi Commissioner Navid Ahmed Shaikh reviewed arrangements for the construction work of the project.

The BRT project has been renamed Karachi Breeze Red Line Project, which is approximately a 29-kilometre corridor, extending from Model Colony in Malir in the northeast of the port city to the Mazar-e-Quaid and Jinnah Avenue in its southwest, where it will intersect at Numaish with the Green Line corridor that is currently under construction.

According to a press statement from the commissioner office, the meeting was attended among others by transport secretary Shariq Ahmed, the deputy commissioners of East, South and Malir districts, the chief executive officer of Trans Karachi, and senior officials of the Mass Transit Authority, Traffic Police, Civil Aviation Authority, Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), district municipal corporations (DMCs), and Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB).

The transport secretary briefed the meeting about the project. He said that the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) has approved the BRT Red Line project comprising two corridors and allocated more than Rs7 billion for its construction. It would include Corridor One from Malir Halt to Numaish of 27 kilometres while the BRT Red line corridor two will be from Numaish to Tower.

The construction on the Corridor One from Malir Halt to Numaish would be started this month for which arrangements are being finalised. The meeting was told that the 16 bus stations would be constructed on this line from Malir Halt to Numaish via Model Colony, Safoora Goth, King Cottages, MET office, NED University, Safari Park, NIPA, Urdu University, Baitul Mukkarram Masjid, Civic Centre, Askari Park, Dawood University and Society Office.

The commissioner said that the Sindh government was making all-out efforts to improve the traffic system in the city and it was aiming to enhance the quality of public transport and improve the traffic flow and reduce traffic congestion in the city.

He said that Red Line BRT was a project which would help the provincial government in achieving its target to provide better transport facilities and improve the transport system. The commissioner asked the civic agencies to extend all their support to the project so that the project was completed timely.

He formed a working group of civic agencies to work in close coordination and cooperation with the transport department. The working group will have officials from the KMC, KWSB, DMCs, Traffic Police Traffic Engineering Bureau and K-Electric.

The commissioner asked the Transport Department to consult and have meetings with the Traffic Engineering Bureau and Traffic Police to address the issues of traffic congestion and to ensure that no traffic problem occurred due the construction of the project. He stressed the need to provide alternative routes to the vehicular and pedestrian traffic during construction with the consultation of the Traffic Engineering Bureau and Traffic Police.