Pakistan’s great achievement, the Peshawar Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has been bestowed with the ‘Gold Standard’ award from the BRT standard technical committee appreciating its quality standard and global best practices.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) admired Zu Peshawar, the operator of the BRT system, on getting the international Gold Standard status, claiming that Pakistan’s Peshawar city is now “officially first in the subcontinent, third in Asia, and 11th city globally to receive the Gold Standard.”
The ceremony was organized by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy at the Chief Minister House.
Dr. Walter Hook, an associate of the technical committee presented the gold award to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa minister Kamran Khan Bangash.
Read more: Peshawar BRT wins international 2022 Sustainable Transport Award
Mr. Bangash said that “the Gold Standard award is a great achievement for Pakistan and the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.” Peshawar BRT was the beneficiary of this award for its “passenger-oriented services, bus routes based on passengers’ needs, adopting clean technology for buses, improving safety, promoting non-motorized traffic and utilization of maximum resources to facilitate the public at large” he added.
Additionally, Peshawar BRT promotes a supportable mode of transport and improves women’s mobility from 2 to 20 percent, lessening the gender gap.
Moreover, Peshawar’s BRT system has 220 electric-hybrid buses (158 currently operational) and features 30 stations along the 27-km passageway all over Peshawar, with inhabitants of about 2 million.
The devoted bus lanes have minimized the traffic congestion and increased easy access to the city for all people, particularly women.
“Zu Peshawar is a state-of-the-art transport system that is significantly faster, safer, cleaner, and more environmentally friendly than all other forms of public transport in the city, It is a game-changer for Peshawar,” stated Xiaohong Yang, ADB country director for Pakistan.
The system was mutually sponsored by the ADB, the French Development Agency (AFD), and the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
