Karachi in 1986 witnessed the first transport riots when a student, Bushra Zaidi, died in a road accident after falling from an overcrowded public transport bus. Ironically, after 20 years, the condition of chaotic public transport system has not changed, and any sad road mishap could spark similar transport riots.
This is not a conjecture but a cruel reality that may be witnessed on any busy road of the city during rush hours. If you are a 'typical' Karachi commuter, there are odds that you have to go through two humiliating and agonising sufferings daily, while going to workplace in the morning and returning in the evening, stuffed in shabby buses, minibuses and coaches and, sometimes, even travelling on the roofs, risking your life.
Notwithstanding the rosy promises and high-sounding pledges of administration bosses, there seems no end to the sufferings of Karachi commuters. If one analyses the statements and announcements regarding solving the chronic public transport issue of Karachi one could find a common similarity in them regarding excessive use of the future tense. Generally, these statements and announcements say that the public transport issue of Karachi would be solved 'in future'.
It is astonishing to observe the lack of sense of urgency to solve this most pressing problem affecting daily lives of millions of Karachiites. Despite knowing well about the nightmarish riots in Karachi in 1986 after the Bushra Zaidi accident, sadly our policymakers have failed to learn any lesson. Perhaps another 'Bushra Zaidi-like accident' might shake off this lethargy. The lack of commitment to solve the public transport problems in Karachi could be gauged from the fact that all probe reports initiated after the Bushra Zaidi case as well as their recommendations are yet to be implemented, though two decades is quite a long time.
The Karachi public transport issue, if defined in simple language, is that sufficient means of public transport are not there to cater the needs of its rapid population growth. The number of commuters is rising by leaps and bounds but the means of public transport are not being increased in matching proportion. Resultantly, now more than 40 commuters vie for a single bus seat in this largest urban city of country.
There had been two big and reliable means of public transport for Karachiites: the Karachi Transport Corporation, and Karachi Circular Railway. Both closed down years back in mysterious and questionable circumstances. Though President Musharraf, in 2004, ordered revival of the KCR in two years, work on its revival was practically abandoned after making functional its first phase from Landhi to City Station.
In fact, this section of the track--the main line--was never closed down, and all the railway authorities did was to run local trains on it, while the real revival of KCR track--from Shah Faisal Colony to Wazir Mansion via Gilani, Liaquatabad, Nazimabad, SITE, Shershah and Glubai--is still awaited.
It is now said that the whole KCR system would be revived in three years with a cost of billions of rupees. Though this is also a future tense promise and most Karachiites are sceptical of this type of pledges, but still it's a welcome sign that the authorities have begun to realise the necessity of revival of KCR. The Pakistan Railways is fully capable of repairing the KCR track and other railway infrastructure from local resources and financing. So, this task should be given to it to avoid costly foreign loans that have generally many tough conditionalities and strings attached.
Another ray of hope for Karachi commuters is the ambitious program of the city government to introduce 8000 CNG buses. It was pledged months back that the first tranche of these buses would run on Karachi roads by December 2006. Though till now there seems no sign of new CNG buses. However, the Karachiites had two more weeks to wait to see if this is a hope or a hype. The public transport sector of Karachi could hardly be improved till the bureaucracy realises the urgency of this issue.
If the bureaucracy really wants to mitigate the plight of Karachi commuters and does not want to see a repetition of the Bushra Zaidi incident it would also have to bring some 'short-term and immediate' tricks out of its magical hat.