KP government sets condition for BRT bus deal

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has conditionally approved the purchase of 50 new buses for the Peshawar BRT project from Chinese company Golden Dragon.

In a surprising move, the provincial cabinet has demanded that the company provide two buses worth Rs88 million free of cost before the purchase process begins.

According to documents available with Hum News English, the decision was made during a recent cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur. The Secretary Transport informed the cabinet that the BRT system is facing a severe shortage of buses, which is affecting operations on 18 existing routes.

He recalled that 220 BRT buses for KP were procured from Golden Dragon in 2018, with an additional 24 buses added later. To address the shortfall, the CM has ordered the immediate addition of 50 more buses to run on Khyber Road, Ring Road, and Bara Road.

Two purchase options were presented to the cabinet:

Option 1: Acquire 50 buses under the existing 2017-18 agreement at $155,530 per bus, costing Rs3.2 billion. The process would be completed in six months, saving $2 million.

Option 2: Float an open international tender, which could take 18 months and cost up to Rs5.6 billion.

After discussion, the cabinet formed a committee headed by the provincial finance advisor to negotiate with the company. The committee will attempt to secure two or more buses free of cost and finalize the deal under existing terms.

If Golden Dragon agrees, the purchase will move forward without applying KPPRA rules. However, if the company declines, the government will proceed with an international tender process and approve a Rs5.6 billion budget.

The Transport Department has been tasked with implementing the cabinet’s decision.

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