The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has decided to launch the pink bus service for women in Abbottabad and Mardan to provide them with a comfortable traveling experience.
A local company has won a tender for the management and day-to-day running of the buses. The company will also provide drivers and other staff for the bus service.
Japan had gifted these buses in 2018 – the election year – and the program was scheduled to be launched in the provincial capital.
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Since the KP government had already announced the BRT project for Peshawar, and due to the construction work, the roads were not in a condition to start the project. Hence, the then Chief Minister of KP, Pervez Khattak, had shifted the bus service to Abbottabad and Mardan.
However, due to electioneering and other reasons, the government almost forgot about it until some media reports highlighted the forgotten buses that were parked in an open space.
Just a week after the media reports, the KP government – after an unscheduled delay of over a year – has given a deadline to launch the project.
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The provincial government is hopeful that the two cities will get the bus service by the mid of this month.
On the other hand, another story published today at ProPakistani has highlighted that the first batch of the BRT buses that reached Peshawar this week are parked in an open area in Hayatabad due to an under-construction depot. We hope that the provincial government will ensure that the buses aren’t damaged due to the ongoing rainy season.