KATHMANDU: Despite efforts of government agencies like Department of Transportation Management (DoTM), traffic police and Gongabu Bus Terminal (GBT), half of the long-route public buses are operating from outside GBT. Nearly 150 of the 280-300 long-route buses operate from outside GBT— the only authorized outside

Kathmandu valley bus terminal.

Because of negligence of government agencies, GBT could not succeed in managing long-route public transport, said Nugal Baidhya, managing director of Creation & Developers Pvt Ltd, which looks after the management of GBT. “We got no support from the traffic police or DoTM to make GBT the long-route bus terminal,” he said.

Fifteen years ago, the Japanese government had built the GBT to reduce road traffic in downtown Kathmandu and Patan and facilitate passengers. Earlier, long-route buses operated from Ratna Park Bus Terminal located in the heart of Kathmandu. GBT has the capacity to operate 800 buses daily.

Nearly 150 long-route buses plying from Mechi to Mahakali are operated in busy areas like Kalanki, Chabahil, Gaushala, Koteshwor, Satdobato and Balkhu of Kathmandu and Patan. This has created problems in traffic management in Kathmandu Valley but the traffic police and DoTM are reluctant to solve the problem. Traffic police and DoTM have their own arguments. “We don’t have sufficient staff to monitor public transport,” said Deepak Devkota, officer at DoTM, “But we are doing our best with limited resources,” he added.

Political instability and frequent change of officers is a major problem in make the GBT campaign a success, said a traffic police officer.