Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mohammad Sohail Afridi on Tuesday inaugurated 52 new hybrid buses and a pink bus service for women, raising the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) fleet to 296 buses.
He also opened the newly established Mall of Hayatabad depot and the solarised Chamkani depot during a ceremony held at the Mall of Hayatabad, according to an official statement.
Women travelling on pink buses will pay fares 25 percent lower than those on other buses. In the first phase, five pink buses will run on selected routes during peak hours. Their number and routes will be expanded gradually.
The chief minister said he had promised pink buses for women across the province and that they were now on the roads. He praised the women drivers of the service, describing them as role models for other women.
Participants were briefed on the hybrid buses, the solarisation of Chamkani depot, the new Mall of Hayatabad depot and the key features of the projects.
The BRT currently serves around 250,000 commuters daily, about 30 percent of whom are women. It also reduces carbon dioxide emissions by around 30,000 tonnes annually. The new buses will allow additional routes to be opened and ease passenger pressure on existing ones.
Procurement and construction of 50 more buses and a new depot, costing Rs6.2 billion, are under way. A further 50 buses, costing Rs5 billion, are included in the current Annual Development Programme. Rs1.5 billion has also been allocated for the complete solarisation of the BRT system, which will reduce electricity costs once completed.
