Sindh Government and Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) have finally decided to start the much awaited Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) "Yellow Line" as a pilot project in the city. According to KMC, BRTS will be a 22-km route from Dawood Chowrangi to Numaish Chowrangi & Lucky Star via 8000 Road Korangi and FTC under public private partnership mode where daily commuters are about 0.7 million per day. The proposed RBTS would cater 13000 passengers per hour per direction.
The first meeting of the standing committee was held on July 30 in the committee room of finance department and attended by the Administrator Karachi Muhammad Hussain Syed, Director General Public Private Partnership Unit Sohail Rajput, Director General Karachi Mass Transit Cell Rasheed Mughal, and others.
The Standing Committee on this occasion accorded the approval to go ahead for publishing the expression of interest (EOI), besides approved draft RFQ documents to invite proposals from reputable and experienced firms/consortia to prepare a feasibility report covering technical, financial, economical, legal and environmental aspects along with transaction advisory services for the BRTS "Yellow line" under public private partnership mode.
KMC Administrator said bus rapid transit facility could solve the transport problems in Karachi. He emphasised the need and necessity of transit facility. Later on DG KMTC, Rasheed Mughal, in his presentation briefed about the city's demographic pattern, travel demand trend, JICA study recommendation for transit project and projected cost of infra-structure and various system. DG also informed about the features of RBT system, its components w.s.r to IT infrastructure including signal priority, automated ticketing system, bus information system and command & control system
He further explained that BRTS would be a 22-km route from Dawood Chowrangi to Numaish Chowrangi & Lucky Star via 8000 Road Korangi and FTC. The feasibility and transaction structure of RBTS would enable KMTC, KMC to make an informed decision which shall ensure an affordable, sustainable and replicable system.
The committee also constituted a sub-committee under the chairmanship of DG KMTC for evaluation of the RFQ documents. The meeting was further informed that Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) had prepared a mass transit network for Karachi with 2030 vision suggesting 2 metro system lines and 6 RBT lines, besides KCR revitalisation programme. JICA has also prepared feasibility study of two RBTS lines (Green line-Surjani to Jama Cloth market and red line-model colony to Regal Chowk via Safoora Goth, university road) and pre-facility of blue line from Sohrab Goth to tower.