All you need to know about the routes of the recently launched bus services in Karachi
One of the greatest woes of the people of Karachi is the decrepit state of public transport, which is not merely a traumatic experience but outright a safety hazard.
Travelling in buses in the metropolis has long been a recurrent nightmare and a real-life experience of a grade 6 poem titled'Safar Ho Raha Hai'— which details the gruelling experience of travelling in a bus in the metropolis.
However, after decades of complaints and an almost complete shift of people to rickshaws and private cab services — which have become increasingly popular despite consistent fuel hikes — the Sindh government took charge and launched not one but three new services: Pink Bus, People’s Bus and People’s Electric Bus.
Launched on February 1, the Pink Bus is a service that caters only to women across the city. Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon took to Twitter to make the announcement.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader wrote: "Transport Dept. Govt. of Sindh will start new bus service in Karachi from tomorrow. This will be exclusively for women”.
The route of the bus as shared by the Sindh Mass Transit Authority (SMTA) is as follows:
At the moment the bus has only one route, which starts at Model Colony and ends at Tower, after passing through Shahrah-e-Faisal Road and II Chundrigar Road.
In June 2022, Karachi welcomed the Peoples Bus Service. The best part of this service: it won't cost you more than Rs50 (depending on your route, of course).
This bus service was inaugurated by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari. The politician had a ride on the bus himself as well to review the facilities.
A total of 240 red-coloured hybrid air-conditioned buses were procured from China for the intra-district bus project.
The people’s bus service has the following routes:
Route 1: This 29-kilometre-long route covers the busiest arterials of the city, passing through Shahrah-e-Faisal. It starts from Model Colony and passes through Malir halt, Drigh Road, Karsaz, Metropole and finally ends at Tower.
Route 2:This route is 32.9 kilometres long and starts from North Karachi, ending at Indus Hospital. Buses on this route pass through Nagan Chowrangi, NIPA, Shah Faisal Colony, and Singer Chowrangi.
Route 3:This 33km route, starting from Nagan Chowrangi turns to North Nazimabad Town, Civic Centre, National Stadium, and KPT Interchange before ending at Singer Chowrangi.
Route 4: Starting from North Karachi, this route passes through New Karachi, University Road, Motorway M9, Ayesha Manzil, Lalu Khait, Guru Mandir, Empress Market, Sindh High Court, II Chundrigar Road and ends at the dockyard.
Routes 5, 6, and 7 are not functional at the moment due to ongoing repair work on the roads.
Route 8: Designated for Larkana (intra-city).
Route 9: Starting from Shireen Jinnah Colony the route goes to Lyari via Boat Basin, Mai Kolachi, Native Jetty, and Mauripur Road.
Route 10: This route starts from Numaish Chowrangi and ends at Clock Tower, Clifton via MA Jinnah Road, Tower, II Chundrigar Road, Arts Council, Metropolitan Hotel, Marriott Hotel, Teen Talwar, Do Talwar, Abdullah Shah Ghazi and Dolmen Mall.
Route 11: This route takes Shahrah-e-Faisal and connects Gulshan-e-Hadeed to Tower.
The transport minister inaugurated the People's Electric Bus Service on January 13 along with Sindh Local Government Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah and Sindh Labour Minister Saeed Ghani at Clock Tower, Seaview.
“These buses, which run entirely on stored battery, are of European standard and will not spread any kind of pollution,” said the minister, adding that along with reducing pollution, the buses would allow travel facilities to citizens at low fares.
This bus is a part of the People’s Bus Service and travels on Route 12 of the service.
Route 12: Starting from Malir Cantt check post 6 this bus travels to Clock Tower Roundabout at Sea View via Shahrah-e-Faisal, FTC building, Korangi Road, and Khayaban-e-Ittehad. This bus is unique in that it even goes to the Jinnah International Airport, and costs only Rs50.
Moreover, the People's Bus Service has also already been launched in Hyderabad, while it will soon be launched in Sukkur.