Prime Minister Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif inaugurated the Green and Blue lines of the mass transit metro bus service on Thursday. It is the first interconnected four-line metro service in the country, designating the step relief for travelers of the twin cities fighting increasing fuel prices.
Addressing the ceremony, the PM said the bus service would be a gift to the people of the twin cities and will help the common man, students, and workers plying the routes.
According to the details, the service will link Bhara Kahu, Koral, GT Road, and Rawalpindi through the Green, Blue, Orange, and Red Lines, respectively.
The bus service will follow the track from Bhara Kahu to PIMS using Green Line and from Koral to PIMS using Blue Line. These two lines will join with the Red Line and from the Faiz Ahmad Faiz bus stop, then passengers may take the Orange line to Islamabad International Airport.
In this regard, Chairman CDA Amir Ahmed Ali informed that 30 buses from China had been made a part of the fleet in order to facilitate the service. The track from Koral to PIMS saw the inclusion of 13 bus stations, with a headway of six minutes, he added.
Read more: Green line metro from Bhara Kahu & Blue line from Gulberg to start operation soon
The chairman added that eight stations were completed on the Green Line, while the rest of the six stations would be completed by August 14.
A bus workshop has also been set up at Bhara Kahu to save dead mileage.
Meanwhile, the premier said that this service should be kept free of cost for one month. He assured funds will also be provided for the signal-free Islamabad expressway from Koral to Rawat.
Further details from the authority revealed that CDA is looking forward to constructing separate and designated corridors for Green and Blue lines in the future.
It is worth mentioning here that for the financial year 2022-23, the federal government has allocated funds amounting to Rs1,500 million for both services.
