Chitralis demand cut in transport fare.

CHITRAL -- The authorities have been asked to bring down the public transport fares between Chitral and other cities as the completion of the Lowari tunnel has cut the journey by two hours.

Former Jughoor village nazim Sajjad Ahmed Khan said that by using the Lowari tunnel the journey had been shortened by two hours. He said due to the special topography of the Lowari Pass and the tricky nature of the dirt road, special fares had been fixed, but the drivers were still fleecing the passengers.

Mr Ahmed said as village nazim he had got a resolution passed in the district council, and also written letters to the district administration, demanding to rationalise the fares which were exorbitant compared to other adjacent districts.

The former village nazim said single fare between Upper Dir and Peshawar was Rs450 against the distance of 271 kilometres, while it was Rs700 between Upper Dir and Chitral against a distance of only 108 kilometres.

He said car drivers took Rs1,050 and Rs1,500 per passenger for journey from Peshawar to Upper Dir and Upper Dir to Chitral. He said there was no rationale behind the inflated fares between Dir and Chitral...