LAHORE: Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz Sharif has sanctioned the introduction of an electric bus service at the tehsil level, with the deployment of 1,500 buses across 91 tehsils beginning in January 2027. The initiative, announced by officials on Wednesday, also includes the establishment of dedicated electric bus depots in each tehsil, and an eventual target of 3,000 operational electric buses across Punjab by June 2027.

According to Directorate General Public Relation – Govt of Punjab, a recent meeting chaired by the Chief Minister revealed specific allocations for the new service: Multan’s nine tehsils are set to receive 169 buses, Sahiwal’s four tehsils 87, and Bahawalpur’s 11 tehsils 215 buses. Additionally, Dera Ghazi Khan will see 63 buses distributed across its 10 tehsils, Faisalabad’s 12 tehsils will get 202 buses, and Sargodha’s 14 tehsils will receive 198 buses. In Gujranwala, seven tehsils are allocated 125 buses, Gujrat’s eight tehsils 122, while Rawalpindi’s 16 tehsils will benefit from 219 buses.

The briefing noted that 612 electric buses are already in operation, serving millions of commuters daily, with an additional 192 buses set to be operational in Multan and other districts shortly. More buses are slated for delivery to Sargodha, Sahiwal, Faisalabad, Lahore, and other regions, including Muzaffargarh, Rawalpindi, and Jhang, among others. Plans are also in place to provide further services to areas such as Mandi Bahauddin, Vehari, Kasur, Lodhran, Nankana Sahib, Narowal, and Multan.

The Chief Minister has set a deadline for the completion of the first phase of the electric bus program by the end of September. Concurrently, progress continues on mass transit systems in Faisalabad and Gujranwala, alongside a project focused on the rehabilitation and reconstruction of 25 stations of the Lahore Metrobus service.