Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah on Friday approved a US$2.6 billion project to revive the Karachi Circular Railways (KCR), which, if it ever sees the light of day, could provide massive relief for commuters in the metropolis.

The chief minister gave his nod of approval to the project at a meeting, which was attended by Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Memon, Finance Advisor to Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Sindh Chief Secretary Muhammad Ijaz Chaudhry, Secretary Finance Suhail Ahmed Rajput, Principal Secretary to CM Naveed Kamran Baloch, Project Director Karachi Urban Transport Corporation (KUTC) and other government officials.

It was stated that the system and infrastructure of the KCR would be completed in the next three of four years. “It is the lower-income and labour class that suffers the most due to the lack of public transport. The rich and the middle-class can afford their own vehicles and manage to find their away around the city,” Shah told the meeting.

He hoped that the less-privileged would be the chief beneficiaries of the KCR revival. Speaking to officials at the CM House, Shah said that the mass transit system was eagerly anticipated by the people of Karachi and should be put on track within a short span of time. Shah noted that the city was the financial hub of the country and its population was growing by the day.

The revival of the KCR seems high on his priority list as he mentioned the project in his first address to the Sindh Assembly on May 30 after being elected as chief minister for a second time running and also later while speaking to the new provincial cabinet on June 1. Shah reiterated his resolve to start the project soon and said that the people of Karachi were in dire need of improved transportation facilities.

Through PowerPoint presentations, the chief secretary informed Qaim Ali Shah that 47.3 percent of all the vehicles plying on the city’s roads were motorcycles, while 36.5 percent were privately-owned cars and just a mere 4.5 percent were for public transport, whereas 9.9 percent were para-transit (irregular public transport). Meanwhile, 1.7 percent of the transport was contract carriages.

Muhammad Ijaz Chaudhry pointed out an alarming statistic when he told the meeting that public transport buses, just 4.5 percent of the total vehicles in Karachi, catered to 42 percent of the people commuting in the metropolis.

Citing these figures, Chaudhry echoed the views of the chief minister by saying that the revival of the KCR was the need of the hour.

He stated that the route of Karachi Circular Railway would be operated from Nipa KCR Station to North Nazimabad KCR Station and then on to Lyari, Machar Colony, Saddar, Kala Pul at Mehran KCR station and then take a roundabout route through PAF Museum, parallel to Sharea Faisal, and link up with the Nipa station again.

The chief secretary said that through the KCR, commuter trains would be available after every five minutes. He added that the KCR would be connected to different areas of the city with the help of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, which could be used by commuters living in areas such as Surjani Town, Landhi, Korangi, Steel Mills and Malir to reach the stations. “At least two million commuters would be facilitated by the KCR on a daily basis.”

Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah said that the total length of the tracks would be 43 kilometres and every passenger would be charged a maximum Rs25 for a full round, which equates to cost 50 paisas per kilometre.

He said that around 700,000 commuters use public transport on a daily basis, but that figure would jump to three million after the effective completion of the project.

The meeting was informed that the project was first initiated by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and subsequently, technical and financial evaluations were undertaken by companies from Europe and USA based on the advice of the Planning Commission of Pakistan.

The project would cost US$2.6billion – around Rs247 billion– and the building of the KCR system, as well as its infrastructure, would be completed in the next three to four years. The private investor would also be invited to put money into the project once it gets some physical shape.

Experts said that the KCR was a vital service for intra-city passengers, who have suffered by travelling on overcrowded, recklessly driven and rickety public transport buses.

— Infographic by Faraz Maqbool