The Rawalpindi–Islamabad Metrobus is an bus rapid transit system operating in the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area of Pakistan. It consists of four routes: the Red, Orange, Blue and Green Lines. The Red and Orange Lines have dedicated lanes with purpose-built stations built along them, while the Blue and Green Lines run alongside regular traffic on the Islamabad Expressway and Srinagar Highway respectively.
The Red Line was the first to be opened, on 4 June 2015, and stretches 22.5 kilometres between Pak Secretariat in Islamabad and Saddar in Rawalpindi. The second route, the Orange Line, stretches 25.6 kilometres between the Peshawar Morr Interchange and Islamabad International Airport, and was inaugurated on 18 April 2022. The Green and Blue lines were added to the network on 7 July 2022.
The system uses e-ticketing and is managed through an Intelligent Transportation System (ITS). The Red Line is managed by the Punjab Mass Transit Authority (PMTA), while the other lines are managed by the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
On 25 November 2023, the CDA announced that it would import 160 buses from China to operate on routes defined by the CDA and operated by the NRTC. On 7 January 2024 the first batch of 30 buses arrived in Islamabad. On 1 April, a batch of 30 buses from China was scheduled to be received at Karachi and from there reach Islamabad within three weeks. On 22 May, a batch arrived in Karachi. On 4 June, a batch of 30 buses was received in Islamabad.
History Before the Metrobus project, public transport in Islamabad and Rawalpindi was rarely a viable option for commuting as many parts of the city were not connected to the center of the Rawalpindi–Islamabad metropolitan area. Therefore, after the completion of the Lahore Metrobus, plans for a similar project in the Rawalpindi–Islamabad metropolitan area were made.
Phase One: Red Line
Construction of the bus rapid transit system began on 28 February 2014 and was completed by June 2015, with 60 buses initially travelling the route. The Rawalpindi Development Authority was tasked with overseeing the project at a cost of approximately , which was split between the federal government and the Punjab provincial government.
The construction was divided into five packages. The project was started on 23 April 2014 and completed on 27 March 2015 at a total cost of as quoted by the contractor of the project. The construction project was awarded to Habib Construction Services, one of the largest construction companies in Pakistan who had worked on several other large projects previously.
In February 2023, PMTA announced the creation of an express route for Red Line, operating from Monday to Thursday. It ran from Saddar to Faizabad and from Faiz Ahmad Faiz to Rehmanabad.
Phase Two: Orange, Green and Blue Lines
The 25.6 km Orange Line route from Peshawar Morr to New Islamabad International Airport, costing , was started by the PML-N government in 2017 and was originally scheduled for completion in 2018. After a delay of five years, it was inaugurated on 18 April 2022 by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Thirty buses were expected to arrive from China for this route, but they faced delays due to the closure of the Port of Shanghai as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, the CDA started operations on this route by borrowing 15 buses from the Red Line. The Faiz Ahmad Faiz station of the Red Line was turned into an interchange station between the Red Line and Orange Line. For the first month of Ramadan, the Orange Line was free to ride.
The new PML-N government also began work on the Blue Line and Green Line routes. Initially, the Blue Line route ran between the PIMS and Koral Chowk while the Green Line route ran between the PIMS and Bhara Kahu. More stops were added to these routes later on. 30 buses were ordered from China for the new routes, of which 15 were placed on the Orange Line route, with the rest placed on the Blue and Green Line routes.
For these new routes, the federal government created the Capital Mass Transit Authority (CMTA) to run the operations of the Orange, Green and Blue Lines, as well as of all future Metrobus routes.
Phase Three: Feeder Routes In late 2022, the CDA approached the National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST) to carry out a feasibility study to identify new potential routes. The study identified 13 potential new bus routes. These routes are intended to connect the existing Metrobus network to all corners of Islamabad. Upon his arrival in Islamabad, the new CDA Chairman Noorul Amin Mengal announced the starting of work on these new routes.
Out of 13 marked feeder routes, four are operational: FR-4 (Bari Imam to PIMS), FR-7 (PIMS to NUST), FR-3A (PIMS to Pak Sect via Faisal Masjid) and FR-9 (Faizabad to Pirwadhi Mor). A shuttle service from Bari Imam to QAU (numbered FR-4A) was also introduced to facilitate QAU students.
Lines LineOperator Opening date LengthDedicated track Route Number of stationsNumber of busesFrequency Journey time (end to end) Notes RedPunjab Masstransit Authority and Capital Development Authority 4 June 2015 Yes Pak Secretariat – Saddar 2468Every 3 to 6 minutes during daytime hours (06:00–20:00) OrangeCapital Development Authority18 April 2022 Yes Faiz Ahmed Faiz Station (H-8/2) – Airport 715Every 10 minutes Blue 7 July 2022 Shared PIMS – Gulberg 1310Every 6 minutesOne hour Green 7 July 2022 Shared PIMS – Bharakau 85Every 6 minutes
Feeder routes LineOperator Opening date LengthDedicated track Route Number of stationsNumber of busesFrequency Journey time (end to end) NotesFR-4Capital Development Authority5 July 2024SharedPIMS Gate – Bari Imam1915Every 10 minutes45 MinutesFR-75 July 2024SharedPIMS Gate – NUST Station 1715Every 10 minutes 35 Minutes FR-825 December 2024SharedPIMS Gate – Taramari Chowk 1815Every 10 minutes 40 minutes
Stations
The stations of the Red and Orange Lines include ticketing booths, concourse level passenger transfer, escalators, platform screens, public toilets, doors, turnstiles for automatic fare collection and other amenities for passenger convenience. A central ITS control room is also included in the project to control the operation of the whole Metrobus system.
Stations of the Green and Blue Lines are at ground level. At many stations, there are no pedestrian crossings on main highways such as the Kashmir Highway. This can put commuters at risk and reduce the appeal of the service.
Ticketing and fares
The Red and Orange Lines use e-ticketing and an Intelligent Transportation System wand influenced by the Peshawar BRT. The ticketing options include a single-ride token and a refillable Metrobus card.
The Green and Blue Lines do not have a similar standardized ticketing system. As of October 2024, the CDA is working on creating a streamlined ticketing system for the feeder routes using KentKart-based ticket solutions which support card payment, online payment through an app, and one-time paper-based tickets. However, these solutions have not been launched.
Fleet The initial fleet consisted of 68 articulated, 18 metre-long, high-floor buses for the Red Line route. These buses were imported and supplied by VPL Limited from the China-based company Sunwin Bus, which is a joint venture formed between the SAIC Motor Corporation Limited and the Sweden-based Volvo Bus Company. VPL Limited is also the sole after-sales distributor for both Volvo Buses and Sunwin Buses in Pakistan, among other products.
In 2022, 30 buses were imported from China for the Orange Line route. Twenty of these buses are traveling on the Orange Line route. Moreover, 20 low-floor buses were also procured for the Blue and Green Lines (10 each).
Electric buses for feeder routes
About 160 HIGER model electric buses have been handed over to the NRTC in China for onward dispatch to Islamabad. These new buses will be used on the Metrobus feeder routes in Islamabad.
Controversies The rainy season of 2015 exposed significant problems with the drainage systems of the network. One of the worst affected stations was the PIMS station, where operations were severely affected by flooding. Similarly, cracks appeared after a minor earthquake in Rawalpindi, which raised questions over the structural integrity of the project's infrastructure.
The long-term financial model used to underpin the project has become a matter of controversy. Reports show that although 150,000 passengers were expected, the lack of feeder routes, led to the network having only 80,000 passengers in the long run. The high cost of fuelling for 68 buses led to the number of buses in use being reduced to 35. This led to overcrowding during peak travelling hours.
The lengthy delay in completing the Orange Line route was also controversial. Although meant to be inaugurated in August 2018, the route was not completed until April 2022. Even after its completion, electrical and civil works continued on sections of the line's route. Furthermore, there was a dispute between the CDA, NHA and Punjab MetroBus Authority over who would operate the route. It was decided that the CDA would run it until a Metro Bus Authority for Islamabad was created.
In 2015, a controversy surrounding the project's annual losses emerged. According to official numbers, a single bus trip costs to operate, while generating only of revenue, resulting in a loss of on each trip. These losses were initially subsidised by the Punjab government, but it was decided in 2016 to divide the losses between the Punjab government and the CDA on the basis of length in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. However, the CDA refused to pay for these losses, attributing it to a lack of funds in 2016. The federal government provided funds to the CDA to help shoulder the burden of the Punjab Mass Transit Authority in 2016, however, in 2017 the problem surfaced again, raising questions on the long-term losses and the financial burden of the project.
See also Rapid transit in Pakistan Lahore Metrobus Multan Metrobus Karachi Metrobus TransPeshawar
References
External links Punjab Masstransit Authority website Punjab transport department website