Inter-city bus terminal to be functional next week

The City District Government Karachi (CDGK) is likely to establish Punjab, NWFP and interior Sindh-bound inter-city bus terminal on 10 acres of plot at Scheme 33 Superhighway on makeshift basis from next week.
Official sources told Business Recorder on Friday that the CDGK was planning to rationalise the entry of increasing numbers of inter-city buses, coming from other provinces and cities to Sindh, creating traffic jams in the metropolis.
"The CDGK plans to allocate about 10 acres of land for setting up a separate bus terminal for Punjab, NWFP, Azad Kashmir and interior Sindh-bound buses on Superhighway," they added. This project is aimed at streamlining the vehicular traffic, which was disturbed by illegal inter-city bus terminals set up in various parts of the city. However, these illegal bus terminals would be shifted to Dai Bitti Amri bus terminal on Superhighway, they added.
They said that the CDGK would publish public notice in newspaper for inviting the illegal inter-city bus operators to discuss the issues, hampering the city's smooth traffic. "The CDGK intends to abolish all the illegal inter-city bus terminals in the city and will ask them to shift their buses to the newly established terminals," they added.
They said that about 45 acres of land had been allotted for this newly established bus terminal, of which 35 acres of land had been grabbed by the land mafia, limiting the allocated space to only 10-acre area. "The CDGK will start highway bus terminal on temporary basis to protect the remaining 10 acres of land from the land grabbers, which would subsequently help minimise the traffic load on the city's major arteries," they hoped.
This move might help the authorities to retrieve the 35 acres of plot from the land grabber, which was the property of the CDGK and it should claim it in the greater interest of city, they added. Basic facilities, including water and electricity, had been provided at the terminal, while other facilities would be provided to bus operators and passengers shortly, they added.
To a question, they replied that residents of Zulfiqarabad were creating hurdles in establishing this terminal due to fears of losing privacy, they added. They said that the CDGK was trying to persuade them to avoid creating hurdles in the process of terminal construction.