KATHMANDU, Dec 23: All night passenger buses leaving the Kathmandu Valley for their destinations must park and start their journey from the New Bus Park in Gongabu with immediate effect.
The new rule has been enforced to minimize road accidents and traffic jams, according to Senior Superintendent of Police, Rajendra Prasad Bhatta, spokesperson for the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office.
Earlier, night passenger buses leaving the Valley would depart from various places of the Valley including Chabahil, Gaushala, Koteshwor, Kalanki, Gongabu and Machhapokhari. The tendency of bus owners to park them randomly in different places has caused traffic jams and road accidents, he said.
56 ticket counters added in Gongabu Bus Park
"Night passenger vehicles leaving the Valley from various parts have caused traffic congestion. So, this new arrangement has been introduced to ease the situation," he said.
President of the Federation of Nepali National Transport Entrepreneurs, Bijaya Bahadur Swar stressed the need for the transport sector to provide service to the people in an easy way. "Transport entrepreneurs have no concerns about making night passenger vehicles leave from the Bus Park. It will be good to manage the pick-and-drop service for passengers in a manageable way," he said.
He asked the government authorities concerned to make necessary arrangements for the buses to pick and drop passengers in different places along the Ring Road, and at the Bus Park. He also expressed concern over the increment of fines for violating traffic rules from Rs 500 to Rs 1,500.
Transport entrepreneurs have demanded the formation of a fully-authorized transport authority to manage the transport sector. The parking lot at the Bus Park has the capacity to accommodate more than 2,000 vehicles at a time.
The parking space spanning 161 ropanis of land was built jointly by the Kathmandu Metropolitan City and Lhotse Multipurpose Pvt. Ltd. under the public private partnership in 2056 BS. Passenger buses leave the Bus Park for more than 60 districts every day.
(RSS)
