PM inaugurates Karachi Circular Railway

[suhaib]

PM inaugurates Karachi Circular Railway

Staff Report

KARACHI: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz formally inaugurated the first phase of the much-awaited Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) on Tuesday. Speaking on the occasion, the prime minister said that the KCR was a part of the government’s plans to make Karachi a true megalopolis at par with other big cities in the world.

“It is evident from the opening of this service that we are determined to develop Pakistan,” Aziz said after inaugurating the train service. After the inauguration of the first phase of the KCR, the prime minister, with several cabinet members and city notables, boarded a train at the City Station. The train began with its trademark whistle. It travelled four kilometres and stopped at the Cantt Station.

The train cars have recently been refurbished in Lahore. The managers have also provided space to accommodate standing travellers. Officials said they had acquired a permanent maintenance staff for cleaning and repairing the cars on a daily basis.

A Lahore-based company has been hired as commercial operator to sell tickets in and outside trains and evolve a mechanism to discourage freeloaders, which was the main cause for the discontinuation of the facility in December 1999.

The prime minister was informed about new facilities introduced in the system. Speaking to reporters, Aziz praised involvement of the private sector in the train service and hoped it would help maintain and continue the service. “Traffic jams and congestion is one of the severest problems of Karachi. With this facility, such problems would not come to an end but I believe that their intensity will certainly decrease,” said Aziz. He said the project would be revived in three phases in a couple of years or so and that it was the first phase which would also benefit thousands of people living in the southern and eastern districts of the city. He said Rs 3.5 billion would be spent on complete renovation of the circular railway.

The prime minister said his government wanted to provide cost-effective transport facilities to the people and the KCR was one of them. He noted that in the first phase, trains would be run from the City Station to Landhi after which the entire loop encircling most of the city would be renovated.

Aziz said a mass transit project similar to the one planned for Karachi would be launched in Lahore. The previous governments, he added, had neglected the railways department but the present government was paying full attention to it. The prime minister also hinted at the strong possibility of reopening the Khokhropar-Munabao rail link between India and Pakistan, saying that the government had plans to convert the meter gauge track from Khokhropar to the end of Pakistani territory into the broad gauge. Pakistan has not yet made a formal announcement for reopening the Khokhropar-Munabao border. The KCR operation was suspended on December 15, 1999, after the railway authorities refused to operate the service due to recurring losses.



the very first train was inaugrated yestoday, some pictures

MORE CLOSE UP SHOTS COMING SOON.


this train is fully mordern and clean,

 

[MIG]

Finally !!! Thats excellent news for Karachi - I just hated to see those abandoned rail stations near Maripur etc

 

[suhaib]

yEvolve's FareWheels ™ offers KCR a mobile automated ticketing system to be used on the board that supports handheld based mobile ticket printing functionality along with the fixed TPM to issue tickets discount cards from the On Station Booking System. The software component ensures smooth transit management by handling entire Revenue Collection Operations, Accounts and IT with travel logs, as well as generating ticket logs and trip reports on daily basis providing the revenue collection management the ability to track operations and minimize pilferage instances while decreasing the chances of embezzlement.

FareWheels , an ideal and complete Fleet Management solution, with all its supporting modules has been previously endorsed by Mass Transit for its bus operations.

 

[waquas_uk]

great

 

[Gasherbrum]

great ~ karachi well be going in circles yet again.

 

[Kashif]

I can see it happening...people from all pinds will queue up to go round in circles on the train having their private picnics.

 

[razzler]

I can see it happening...people from all pinds will queue up to go round in circles on the train having their private picnics.

D D D

 

[SensiblePakFan]

https://www.dawn.com/news/1540874/why-does-kcr-need-to-cost-so-much-anyway

Useless infighting has kept this from ever happening.

 

[Slog]

Lol this has been going for hears

 

[Bigboii]

This will be costly cause Karachi is dense with high property value hell they are having problem with public transportation in Los Angeles so it would be super hard in Karachi only federal gov or a motivated provincial gov can do this job and it will be super costly it's always hard to build transportation from scratch in a megacity

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

Karachi needs mass transportation, and the Sindh government wont do anything for Karachi so the federal government needs to step in. In a ideal situation Karachi would have an underground metro, but thats not affordable for Pakistan right now, so this is the best option to start with.

 

[Bewal Express]

Use the MR bahria billions to help build it. We all know where it will end up if Billo and family get their hands on the billions.

 

[Syed1]

Until we have PPP in the Sindh government nothing is going to happen. LOL at this thread from 2005. It did briefly run during Mush era but as soon as PPP got elected and democracy started taking its revenge the service was shut down and its been more than a decade with no service.


Thank you PPP, we need more Bhutto shaheeds.

 

[Bewal Express]

Until we have PPP in the Sindh government nothing is going to happen. LOL at this thread from 2005. It did briefly run during Mush era but as soon as PPP got elected and democracy started taking its revenge the service was shut down and its been more than a decade with no service.


Thank you PPP, we need more Bhutto shaheeds.

IA they spend the MR money on something tangible or these competent guys will nick it all. They should most on Karachi on water, public transport and improving the lot of the poor in rural Sindh.

 

[SensiblePakFan]

Karachi Circular Railway to resume operation from 16th

KARACHI: The Pakistan Railways is to resume the Karachi Circular Railway, partially from Monday, November 16, all the way from its Pipri Station to Orangi Station. According to a press statement from the Pakistan Railways, the distance is around 60 kilometers from Pipri to Orangi Station. “Four trains in Up and Down directions will commute the passengers between Pipri and Orangi stations with a uniform gap of three hours,” said the press statement.

The first train will depart the Orangi station at 7am in the morning followed by subsequent departures at 10am, 1pm and 4pm; simultaneously, departures shall also take place from Pipri Station. A uniform fare of Rs50 per travel has been fixed. The Pakistan Railways Pipri Station is near the Pakistan Steel Mills. All the way from Pipri, Landhi, Malir, Drigh Road, Cantt Station and then City Station, runs Pakistan Railways Main Line (ML-1), which is of 46 kilometers.

From the City Station towards the Orangi Station, the distance is around 14 kilometers. After the City Station, there’s Keamari Station, Karachi Port Trust Station, Wazir Mansion Station, Lyari Station, Baldia Station, Gulbai Station, Site Station, Shah Latif Station and then Orangi Station. According to an official of Pakistan Railways, the ML-1 is already functional for upcountry trains. Regarding the encroachments on the KCR’s track from the City Station towards the Orangi Station, the official explained that all major encroachments have been removed and in four-to-five days, they will repair any damage found on the railway track. A trolley inspection, in this regard, has already been conducted. The distance, he said, will be covered in not more than 45 minutes from Pipri to Orangi Station.

An official of the Sindh government’s Transport and Mass Transit Department told The News that the Sindh government isn’t on board regarding revival of the KCR. The official explained that the KCR initially had no route from Pipri to Drigh Road. The Supreme Court in its May 8, 2019 order directed the Pakistan Railways to end encroachments on the KCR’s right of way and hand the track over to the Sindh government, which should make it functional in one month.

On the other hand, the Sindh government had already planned a master plan for KCR, which was apparently scrapped by the federal government.

The KCR started its operations in 1969 under the administration of the Pakistan Railways and was discontinued in 1999 due to major financial losses. Since then, several attempts were undertaken by the federal and provincial governments to revive thelocal train. The KCR project comprises a 29.41-kilometre-long two-way KCR loop along with the provision of a 13.69-kilometre-long two-way dedicated track along the Pakistan Railways’ mainline, which stretches from the City Station to the Drigh Road Station. The Sindh government hired the NESPAK as the lead and technical consultant of the project while AKHUND Forbes was the legal consultant. ProMag was also the technical consultant with expertise in real estate and then China Railway Engineering Corporation was its technical sub consultant and Hang Law Associates was the project’s legal sub consultant. The KMPG was the financial consultant. The official of the Sindh Transport department said that now a new feasibility study will be prepared by the federal government, which will at least take two years to complete.

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/742112-karachi-circular-railway-to-resume-operation-from-16th

 

[SensiblePakFan]

KCR set to begin service from Thursday

KARACHI: The Karachi Circular Railway is set to resume operations on November 19 after 20 years as a train for the intra-city project arrived at the City Station on Monday.

The service has two locomotives and 11 coaches, each having the capacity to transport 100 passengers, 64 on seat and 36 standing, all the way from the Pipri station to the Orangi station.

The distance between the Pipri and Orangi stations is around 60 kilometres, according to a statement issued by the Pakistan Railways. “Four trains in [two directions] will commute the passengers between Pipri and Orangi stations with a uniform gap of three hours.”

The first train will depart from the Orangi station at 7am on November 19 followed by subsequent departures at 10am, 1pm and 4pm. A uniform fare of Rs50 per travel has also been fixed.

The Pakistan Railways Pipri Station is near the Pakistan Steel Mills. All the way from Pipri, Landhi, Malir, Drigh Road, Cantt Station till the City Station runs the Pakistan Railways Main Line (ML-1), which is of 46 kilometres long.

From the City Station towards the Orangi Station, the distance is around 14 kilometres. After the City Station, there are Keamari, Karachi Port Trust, Wazir Mansion, Lyari, Baldia, Gulbai, SITE, Shah Latif and Orangi stations.

According to an official of Pakistan Railways, the ML-1 is already functional for the inter-city trains. Regarding the encroachments on the KCR’s track from the City Station towards the Orangi Station, the official explained that all major encroachments have been removed with the fixation of the track. The distance, he said, will be covered in not more than 45 minutes from Pipri to Orangi.

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/74...86.1866756261.1605693302-683781891.1605693298

 

[MenInG]

Pakistan Railways officials on Wednesday announced that the Karachi Circular Railway's initial route that was planned for its resumption after two decades has been changed over failure to timely clear a portion of the tracks.

Originally, the first KCR train was scheduled to depart from the Orangi station at 7am on November 19, followed by subsequent departures at 10am, 1pm, and 4pm, and was to move between Orangi and Pipri.

The distance between both stations is 60 kilometres and includes Landhi, Malir, Drigh Road, Cantt, City, Kemari, Wazir Mansion, Lyari, Gulbai, Site, and Shah Abdul Latif.

Read more: Karachi Circular Railway to resume operations after 2 decades on Thursday

The KCR will now move between Pipri and City station, officials said on Wednesday. It will not travel between Orangi and City stations as planned, as the 14-km long track between the two could not be cleared.

"Railway engineers and experts have not given a clearance for the 14-km track," the officials said, adding: "Level crossing on the 14-km route to Orangi station is a big problem."

Meanwhile, sources said that the train cannot travel at more than 35km/h on the 14-km track.

According to the sources, the trains are not in the condition required to travel at 50km/h.

The railway management shall make the circular train operational on the 14-km track between December 15 and 30, while from tomorrow, November 19, a 46-km track will be functional.

The KCR is set to resume operations after two decades.

It has two locomotives and 11 coaches — each with the capacity to transport 100 passengers, 64 on seats and 36 standing.

A uniform fare of Rs50 per travel has also been fixed.

https://www.geo.tv/latest/319210-ka...setback-as-entire-tracks-could-not-be-cleared

 

[BouncerGuy]

Centre to provide sovereign guarantee for KCR revival, Kakar assures Sindh CM

KARACHI: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Monday assured interim Chief Minister retired Justice Maqbool Baqar that the federal government would resolve issues facing the revival of the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR), including the project’s sovereign guarantee, as well as the K-IV project.

At a meeting with the CM at the PM House in Islamabad, he said the KCR’s sovereign guarantee and other issues would be resolved for the launch of the project, said a statement issued from the CM House.

Mr Baqar told Mr Kakar that the federal government needed to provide a sovereign guarantee for the KCR project loan, showcasing strong commitment at the national level.

“The sovereign guarantee adds a layer of financial security and assurance for investors and stakeholders involved in the project,” the CM said and requested the prime minister that the federal government might sign a framework agreement so that the project could move ahead under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Justice Baqar also requested the prime minister to direct Pakistan Railways to hand over land along the right of way (RoW) for the KCR, which was critical for the success of the project.

The statement said that the chief minister in his meeting with the prime minister was assured that the federal government would resolve the issues of the provincial government’s important development projects.

The CM informed the PM that the delay in issuance of NOCs/permission from the federal government posed major obstacles in carrying forward the construction activities.

The statement said the CM discussed with the PM five important development projects – KCR, Malir Expressway, Greater Karachi Bulk Water Supply, better known as K-IV project, and BRT Red Line – and urged the PM to issue necessary directives to remove obstacles for their timely completion and launch.

It said Justice Baqar apprised the prime minister about the impediments that emerged in the five projects, which could be removed with his interventions. “The PM’s response was not only positive, but quite supportive and helpful,” the statement quoted the CM as saying.

The CM said the PC-1 with respect to the Karachi BRT Redline project was cleared by the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on April 15, 2019, and approved by Ecnec on Aug 29, 2019, at the cost of Rs78,384.33 million ($503.21 million).

The CM requested the prime minister to advise Ecnec/ the Planning Commission for the earliest issuance of an anticipatory approval. It would allow TransKarachi to cover the losses, reinstate the work at the site and subsequently, complete the project on time.

The caretaker CM requested the PM to direct the concerned ministry to allocate an additional amount of at least Rs24.5 billion towards the K-IV project during the current financial year (2023-24), facilitating the plan to be completed within the time prescribed.

Briefing the PM about the K-IV project, Justice Baqar said the dilapidated infrastructure and a weak distribution system had resulted in widening the gap between the supply and consumption of water, which was bound to pile miseries on people.

He said the revised PC-I had already been approved by Ecnec in 2022 for Rs126,404.751 million. “Originally scheduled to be completed by March 2023, the project has been delayed for multiple reasons and is now planned to be completed by October 2024,” the CM said.

The CM told the prime minister that work on the Malir Expressway was in full swing, but some NOCs / permissions from the federal ministries posed major obstacles in carrying forward the construction activities and the commercial banks — the lenders on the project — had made those NOCs a condition for moving forward with disbursements. “If these NOCs are not arranged by Nov 15, 2023, the lenders/banks would stop further disbursements,” the CM said.

Centre to provide sovereign guarantee for KCR revival, Kakar assures Sindh CM

Caretaker PM promises all-out support for K-IV, Red Line and Malir Expressway projects.

www.dawn.com