The Yellow Line project is Karachi’s third service under the Bus Rapid Transit system, costing around Rs61 billion.
The 21km bus route, whose construction is being assisted by the World Bank, starts from Dawood Chowrangi in Korangi, via Jam Sadiq Bridge, Main Korangi Road, FTC Interchange, Sharae Faisal, Shahrah-i-Quaideen, Kashmir Road, and culminates at Khudadad Colony, according to the implementing agency of the project—Sindh Mass Transit Authority (SMTA).
The route length is 17.6 km at-grade along with 3.4 km in underpasses. This line not only provides on-corridor service but also “manages off-corridor routes” like the BRT Redline.
Two bus depots have been designated for the Yellow Line, where its 268 buses can be parked and maintained. The first depot, with an area of approximately three acres, is at the Dawood Chowrangi in Landhi and the second depot, with an area of approximately 11 acres, is at the Christian Colony.
This corridor consists of 28 bus stations: 22 at-grade stations and six underpass stations. However, the exact coordinates of the bus stations have not been determined yet.
The development work for the project has been divided into six packages. The first two packages are related to the development of the two bus depots.
In April 2023, Sindh Transport Minister Sharjeel Memon held a meeting with the SMTA where he instructed the officials to speed up the work on the project. He considered starting the development work on the bus depot of the Christian Colony.
The third and fifth packages are designed for the overall BRT infrastructure along the route. The most important deliverable in this project is the fourth package, which is the re-development of the one-kilometer Jam-Sadiq Bridge.
“When I discussed the work on Jam Sadiq Bridge with SMTA officials, they said that the lifeline of this bridge has been completed, and it will be rebuilt in the Yellow Line Project,” Bilal Khalid. founder of Urban Nerves Pakistan, told Aaj News.
But the SMTA website said that the decision on the rehabilitation or replacement of the bridge is under deliberation with the consultant and other stakeholders, including the Malir Expressway team.
“The last package will cover the improvement of off-corridor roads, including patch works and the development of bus stations along the off-corridor routes,” it said.
According to the Sindh budget for the financial year 2023-24, the project’s Rs61 billion cost would be borne by three entities. This includes a World Bank loan of Rs53.5 billion, the Sindh government’s share of around Rs2.5 billion, and the private sector’s share of around Rs5 billion.
The PPP government approved the Yellow Line project under the development schemes of the Transport and Mass Transit department in October 2019, and the project completion date was marked as June 2025.
So far, the provincial government has spent around Rs37 million on this project, and it has allocated approximately Rs400 million for this project in the fiscal year 2023-24. This allocation represents 20 per cent of the government’s share of funds for this fiscal year.
“The first development work for this project is the reconstruction of Jam Sadiq Bridge,” Basheer Hussain, the deputy director of the SMTA, said.
“Hopefully, the tendering and construction work of the bridge will start this year, and this corridor project will be completed on time.”
If this project is completed on time, Hussain added, the SMTA expects a daily ridership of 300,000 on this route.
