While generally hailed by citizens as landmark initiatives, the bus
rapid transit (BRT) or metro bus projects in Lahore and
Rawalpindi-Islamabad have come under criticism from some politicians.
One reason for inviting such a critique is this system’s visibility and
mobility. The debate surrounding the matter is whether this initiative
is aimed at giving semblance of prosperity or is it actually
contributing to human and social development.
The comparisons between investment in physical and human capital
demonstrate that the quality and access to healthcare, for instance, is
as important a priority for the policy planners as are the physical
means to take the patients to the hospitals and clinics in time, or the
quality of transport that would promote good public health. There is no
doubt that investment in physical capital including transport has been
established as necessary condition for spurring economic growth. This is
why a heavily tilted funding towards physical infrastructure in
developing countries is not uncommon. An International Finance
Commission study titled “The Impact of Infrastructure on Growth in
Developing Countries” found that investment in transport in developing
countries showed a positive impact on the economic growth by generating
employment and raising real estate value. Several studies reveal that
benefits of BRT systems, now in place in over 180 cities of mostly
developing countries, outweigh cost of these projects over a period of
time.
In their response, the government officials in Pakistan have focused
more on the need for efficient and affordable public transport system in
rapidly urbanizing cities where millions of people commute for
livelihood, education, health care, business, shopping and recreation.
An emphasis is of course laid on the economic growth factor which is an
essential prerequisite for human development. But the discourse
presented by transport experts and government functionaries,
particularly in Punjab falls short of highlighting the human, social and
even psychological dividends of the transit system. In the Pakistani
context there are additional advantages like social pride and
empowerment, social integration and discipline, and wellbeing with a
sense of satisfaction and happiness.
A large body of anecdotal and technical evidence shows that quantity
and quality of physical infrastructure raises the productivity of human
capital and enriches the quality of community life. The United Nations
describes decent standard of living alongside healthy life and knowledge
as three key dimensions of human development. Human development index
is a composite concept. In case of health for instance, human
development cannot be measured merely by looking at the indicators of
quality of health care as health is linked to several other factors
including status of public health, living conditions and environment,
speedy connectivity, social happiness, and the list goes on. A research
on “Social, Environmental and Economic Impacts of BRT Systems” conducted
by Washington-based World Resources Institute unveiled the fact that in
Colombia, Turkey and Mexico, metro bus systems reduced road fatalities,
crashes and injuries, brought down exposure to harmful air pollutants,
and enhanced physical activity. By reducing local air pollution and
emissions, metro bus in Mexico City prevented more than 2,000 days of
lost work due to illness and two deaths per year, thus saving around 4.5
million dollars.
Through an environment of transit equity, the BRT system in our
country is leading to social integration as millions of people from
public and private sectors journey together. Our education system has
long been taken to task for its apartheid stemming from trifurcation
into religious seminaries, government schools and private academic
institutions. But such discrimination is not to be seen in metro buses
where people from almost all segments of society benefit from this
transport system. This is unlike an experience in a mega shopping mall
where people from low to high income strata visit but only the affluent
would actually buy expensive brands. Equal access to metro bus
facilities inspires sense of equality and confidence and thus breeds
social cohesion. A new confidence is seen among women, senior citizens
and physically challenged whose special needs have been kept in view in
the system. A sense of social responsibility, pride and dignity prevails
at the bus stations and inside the buses. One can witness commuters
offering seats to senior citizens or co-passengers in frail health. The
positive impact of the transit system on the sense of wellbeing of
riders and people living near the system has been revealed in some
studies conducted internationally. The modern and hi-tech space at the
stations gives feeling of the city’s power.
From pre-paid ticketing and standing in queues to following security
checks, the citizens are imperceptibly being disciplined. The caring for
time is a virtue of all developed nations. Already, the gated housing
enclaves, mega shopping malls, state-of-art cinema theatres, and
motorways are contributing towards reforming the habits of our people in
terms of community living, shopping, recreation and travelling.
Metro bus is also integrating cities as citizens of Rawalpindi and
Islamabad are availing opportunities in both the cities. The metro bus
is now the prime link between the traditional city of Rawalpindi and
young capital of the country. Thousands of individuals pour into
Islamabad from Rawalpindi daily for work and education, and return in
the afternoon. It is like a trip to downtown and back which is gradually
diffusing the twin city outlook. But it is not one way track as more
and more people are coming to Islamabad for work, education and
recreation, thousands from Islamabad are visiting Rawalpindi for
business and shopping. An otherwise laidback capital inhabited mostly by
government officials has started giving an appearance of a pulsating
city. Metro bus is also a gigantic step towards turning urban centers
into smart cities. Smart urban mobility is a crucial element of smart
city, which is supposed to be integrated in terms of an efficient, and
reliable communication network physical and e-based.
As comparisons are drawn in terms of the number of riders on RBT,
time saving, economic affordability and employment generation, research
and surveys must also be conducted to assess and quantify people’s
acceptance and happiness resulting from this system as well as its role
in promoting health, protecting environment, instilling discipline,
creating social homogeneity, and community acceptance or satisfaction.
Needless to say the results of such surveys would overwhelmingly support
these projects, as has been witnessed in other developing countries.
Despite world economic recession in 1970s, Brazil dared to pioneer
RBT system in its city of Curitiba. Brazil’s population multiplied to
around 200 million in 2012 and today it is world’s fifth most populous
country. The question is: With a population of what Brazil’s was four
years ago and having the status of world’s sixth most populous nation,
could Pakistan’s policy makers afford to delay the mass transit system
by another decade or so?
After building motorways, eliminating dengue virus and initiating
solid waste management, the metro transit system is yet another
milestone of international standard which is improving quality of life
and creating a sense of wellbeing. This landmark project has wetted
appetite of the public for its replication elsewhere, expansion to other
routes and speedy implementation of metro train system.
