So Rawalpindi Islamabad Metro bus service is here at last. The citizens of Pindi and Islamabad especially girls of Pindi are extremely excited, happy and relieved by the start of this service and they cannot express their glee enough. I have already written about the hardships of Pindi girls suffered while they travel in the current public transport. They dread to leave their house as they imagine traveling in that inhumane ‘toyota hiace’ and then in evening, the tremble to even think of going back in the same hell-box. With Pindi metro here, the biggest prize is the peace of mind for these girls. I have already reached Islamabad from Karachi just to travel on the Pindi metro on the very first day. I am waiting passionately for the inauguration of this awesome project. My heart aches a little when I think that still Pakistan’s biggest city Karachi doesn’t have any public transport system let alone a decent one.
Condition is pathetic in Karachi. One hopes that someone like Shahbaz Sharif also takes hold of Karachi and perhaps than we would get a mass transit system. Anyway, I am happy for the Rawalpindi and the Islamabad and of course for Lahore and Multan. Thousands of metro jobs have opened in Multan, Lahore, Islamabad, and Rawalpindi which is another thing to rejoice. These are ongoing permanent jobs which will benefit indirectly hundreds of thousands of families in these regions. The fare of the metro bus is also very economical; Just Rs. 20. If you go to Islamabad from Pindi the usual fare of ‘tota’ is Rs. 60 and if you travel by taxi then it is Rs. 500. But with metro you will just pay Rs. 20. That is massive saving for the poor people who daily commute for their jobs, businesses or education between twin cities. Full marks to Shahbaz Sharif here and also to Hanif Abbasi and everyone else involved in this project.