West Nepal’s advanced bus park comes into operation

By Siraj Khan,Nepalgunj, Aug. 19:The Kohalpur Bus Park, the first advanced bus park in Western Nepal, in Banke district, has come into operation on Friday.

The bus park came into operation 40 days after its inauguration. Constructed at a cost of Rs. 306.2 million, the bus park was inaugurated on July 9 by Lumbini Province Chief Minister Dilli Bahadur Chaudhary.

"The bus park was constructed with a 40 per cent investment by the municipality. The remaining 60 per cent was sought as loan from the Town Development Fund," said Purna Acharya, Mayor of Kohalpur Municipality.

Authorities informed that shops inside the bus park took time to rent the shutters, due to which it took 40 days to begin services from the bus park.

The bus park is being managed by Bageshwori Transport Operator Pvt. Ltd. Chairman of the company Man Prasad Acharya informed that public vehicles leaving for long and short routes started providing services from the bus park on Friday.

The bus park has separate parking spaces for long-route and short-route vehicles, making it easier for the passengers to find their vehicles. The entry and exit points of the bus park are also separate, reducing congestion.

"A notice board has been installed in a conspicuous manner at the entry gate of the bus park with a list of dos and don'ts for vehicle operators and passengers," said Hem Bikram GC, coordinator of the bus park's management committee.

The bus park has been constructed over 16 bighas of land (one bigha: approx. 6773 square metres). "There is a breastfeeding room, smoking zone, help desk area, space for security personnel and digital information boards inside the bus park," added GC.

"The bus park also has a shopping complex, three platforms, 59 commercial shutters and an electric vehicle charging station," said Mayor Acharya.

Kohalpur Municipality awarded the bus park management contract to the Bageshwori Transport Operator Pvt. Ltd. under an agreement that the company will provide Rs. 7,177,777 to the municipality annually.