LAHORE, Nov 15: Passengers at Ferozepur Road bus stops may not wait longer for buses as soon as a 110-strong bus fleet will run on the road.

Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif launched on Tuesday the new bus service to be operated under the regulations of the Lahore Transport Company (LTC).

At an inaugural ceremony held at his camp office of Model Town, Mr Sharif said the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) government wanted to ply affordable and modern buses in Lahore and other big cities of the province.

In the first phase, 110 buses would run on Ferozepur Road, of them 56 have arrived in the city, while the remaining would be shipped from the Karachi port to the city in a few days.

Mr Sharif said another fleet of 200 buses would also be brought from China. “We have decided to ply 700 new buses to make the public transport system efficient,” he added.

He said the bus fleet would not charge senior citizens (aged 65 or above) fares. He spoke of the efficient bus service launched by his 1998 government. He said he had signed an agreement with a South Korean company (Daewoo) in 1998. “As soon as the company started operation, the PML-N government was toppled by dictator Musharraf,” he said. Besides Gen Musharraf, he also rapped his predecessors in the Punjab, saying that they (Pervaiz Elahi government) had looted billions in the name of ‘subsidy’ for buses. They did nothing on grounds to repair the fleet and maintain the required buses, he said.

He said a Chinese firm had manufactured considering environmental issues.

LTC Chairman Khwaja Ahmad Hassan said on the occasion the LTC had recruited 100 traffic enforcement inspectors and imparted them necessary training on traffic rules.

“Lahorites will witness a positive change in the entire urban transport operation,” he said.