PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to launch a train service in the Peshawar Valley in collaboration with the federal government.
It has been agreed that the proposed project will be named the Peshawar Valley Railway.According to officials, work will begin on the 62-kilometre Peshawar-Nowshera-Jehangira Railway Section in the first phase.
The service will utilise the existing infrastructure of Pakistan Railways, while a mutually agreed track access charge will be paid for using the railway network.The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has formally written to the secretary and chairman of Pakistan Railways in this regard.
The letter stated that the provincial government is working on introducing rail cars and diesel multiple units on the existing railway infrastructure, and groundwork for a preliminary feasibility study has already begun.
Under the plan, the second phase will include work on the 65-kilometre Nowshera-Mardan-Dargai Railway Section.In addition, development is proposed for the 27-kilometre Mardan-Charsadda section and the 18-kilometre Peshawar-Jamrud Section. Work is also planned on the 60-kilometre Kohat-Jand Railway Section.
The letter stated that during a meeting between the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and Pakistan Railways, both sides discussed enhancing cooperation.Suburban rail services will be implemented gradually under the railways’ open access framework.
Pakistan Railways was requested to nominate a technical team to represent the department in the joint working group for the project.Speaking to Geo News, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Secretary for Transport Muhammad Zubair described the initiative as a “game changer,” saying that it would mark the first time the provincial and federal governments will be working together on such a project.
He hoped the project would help the provincial government save costs on infrastructure construction while increasing business and revenue for Pakistan Railways.The secretary believed that the Peshawar-Jehangira rail service would benefit hundreds of thousands of passengers daily, including women and children.
