Govt set to put Rs 545 cr BRTS project on track

GS Paul
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, January 28

The state government pumps in efforts to rejuvenate the project of Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) worth Rs 545 crore in Amritsar and added a fresh fleet of low floor air-conditioned buses today.

To motivate bus culture among the people here, Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu announced free ride for first three months. Though the administration is yet to take a final call on the fare, it has been assured that nominal fare will be there, besides special incentives.

The free ride privilege would permanently be valid for schoolchildren ‘wearing uniform’ with valid identity card, whereas college students will get 66 per cent concession. Senior citizens and physically challenged travellers will be charged just 50 per cent fare.

A special card can be made for just Rs 25 which would enable people to travel without limit for one day.

Sidhu said the volume of buses had been increased.

From safety aspect, the screens installed on the 47 bus stands en route would display the arrival of buses. Apart from this, every bus would have cameras, GPS and automatic doors. “The 31-km dedicated route of the project, including India Gate to Verka, Verka to Amritsar entry gate and from India Gate to Amritsar entry gate, was made fully operational with a fleet of 97 buses today. The frequency of the buses on every route would not be more than 4 minutes,” he said.

Those present on the occasion included Cabinet Minister OP Soni, Lok Sabha MP Gurjit Singh Aujla, Mayor Karamjit Singh Rintu, DC Kamaldeep Singh Sangha, Police Commissioner S Srivastava, MC Commissioner Sonali Giri, PWD XEN JS Sodhi and local MLAs.