The administration of Gilgit Baltistan announced the launch of an all women pink bus service in the region.
The chief secretary of the area announced that on Tuesday, a women’s-only pink bus service began operating in the capital cities of Gilgit and Skardu as a first-of-its-kind initiative to ease their travel.
A free pink service will run on four important routes between 6:00 am and 9:00 am and 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm under the project, according to Mohyuddin Ahmad Wani, Chief Secretary of Gilgit Baltistan. Khalid Khurshid, the chief minister, inaugurated the project.
Three buses each were provided to Gilgit and Skardu in the initial phase, but according to Wani, the government is working to expand service to more towns in the hilly area.
Pink buses for women inaugurated today in Gilgit Baltistan 🇵🇰 #BeautifulPakistan pic.twitter.com/bSYZIZxjhM
— Cultural Maverick (@CulturalMaverik) October 4, 2022
“Traffic police have also been instructed to facilitate these buses on roads,” he added.
This is “great news for our daughters, sisters and mothers of Gilgit-Baltistan. Now they will be able to travel in a safe and comfortable environment and go freely to their educational institutions, hospitals, and markets,” Wani said.
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Pakistan is one of the Asian nations where fast urbanisation and population increase have caused serious mobility problems for individuals who are simultaneously dealing with poverty, inequality, and subpar access to services. Regarding the problem of accessibility to public transit, inadequate transportation infrastructure, a steady rise in the ownership of private vehicles, and a disregard for traffic laws pose further risks to a sustainable transportation system.
These topics are slowly making their way into public and discursive political and academic debates in Pakistan. More importantly, it is acknowledged in these discussions that those who are marginalized—the underprivileged, the jobless, the elderly, and women—are those who suffer the most.