Edhi Orange Line to be integrated with Green Line BRT: Sharjeel Memon

KARACHI: Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon announced on Tuesday that the Edhi Orange Line will now be integrated with the Green Line BRT at the Orange Line bus depot.

Addressing the integration ceremony, Memon said the merger has expanded the Orange Line from four stops to 10, allowing passengers to travel from Orangi to Nagan Chowrangi.

The integration will enable Orange Line buses to operate along the Green Line BRT track, providing easier access for residents of Orangi Town.

The senior minister said the Orange Line BRT corridor has been expanded from four kilometres to 10 kilometres following its integration, improving connectivity within Karachi.

He added that, after the integration of the Orange Line and Green Line BRT systems, the government is targeting to facilitate daily travel for up to 100,000 passengers.

He noted that Pakistan is the only country with a BRT system where commuters can travel on both the Orange Line and Green Line using a single card.

Commenting on the Red Line BRT project, Memon acknowledged that the project has faced multiple challenges.

However, he said efforts are underway to complete the main corridors by March or April, while work on parallel depots and other allied infrastructure continues.

Memon further said that hundreds of additional buses are in the procurement pipeline, with 500 buses and another batch of 100 buses currently under process.

He expressed concern over the delay in the arrival of 150 buses promised by the prime minister, saying the Sindh government would once again urge the federal government to fulfil its commitment to the people of Sindh.

He said the provincial government aims to resolve transport issues across Sindh through sustained investment in mass transit and public transport projects.

The extension track of the Green Line BRT spans 1.8km from Numaish Chowrangi to Jama Cloth Market. Once completed, citizens will be able to travel from Surjani Town to Jama Cloth. Leaders of the PML-N, PPP and MQM-Pakistan have pledged to work together for Karachi’s development.

Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab said Pakistan Infrastructure Development Co Ltd (PIDCL) has promised to complete and open the Green Line extension for the public by October 31, 2026.

He also highlighted that, for the first time in the region’s history, a separate BRT service for women has been introduced, and new electric buses have arrived in Karachi.

Memon further announced that bus routes in Hyderabad will be expanded, and People’s Bus services will be launched in Khairpur, Shikarpur, and Tando Allahyar districts.

Work has also begun on the right-of-way for the Red Line BRT in Karachi.

He announced that starting on Wednesday, with the new year, a double-decker bus service will begin operating for Karachi residents.

The Minister said that the double-decker buses will run on a trial basis from Malir to Shahrah-e-Faisal and are expected to reduce traffic congestion and overcrowding.

Additional double-decker buses will be introduced for the city later, he added.

Memon requested the premier to fulfill his earlier announcement of providing 150 buses and emphasised that no one will be allowed to occupy government land.

It is merit to mentioned that initiated in 2016 under the supervision of the Sindh Mass Transit Authority (SMTA), the Orange Line Bus Rapid Transit Project was a four-kilometer-long bus route from Orangi Town Office to the Matriculation Board Office Chowrangi.

Although the project was expected to reach completion by 2017, the scheme was shelved for the next six years, until 2022, when it was finally completed.

During this time, the cost of the project was revised twice, with its final budget touching Rs5.5b, after including the purchase, maintenance and operational charges of 20 buses alongside the extension of the project to Nagan Chowrangi. As a result of the SMTA’s inability to arrange qualified staff for operating a bus rapid transit system, the entire logistics of the Orange Line were handed over to the federal government’s Sindh Infrastructure Development Company Limited (SIDCL) for three years.