Transportation means in Kathmandu

Transportation means in Kathmandu
Bhrikuti Rai
Kathmandu, 10 July

Public transportations are the life lines of Kathmandu. Without them the city’s fast pace life would have come to a standstill. Although not very comfortable, these vehicles have become commoner’s best friend. “Public transportations are good here. There are student discounts which is very helpful for students. So I think it is great ”, says Bhim Ghimire, student.

In addition to public transportations there are plenty of comfortable taxis on Kathmandu’s streets to choose from as well. But not everyone can afford their high tariff rates. Ramesh Thapa, a taxi driver says, “People choose taxis because they are faster, convenient and is safe from pick pocketing. It is especially useful when people are in hurry and in situations when people are too sick to travel in local buses. But with its comparatively higher fare, it is not possible for average Nepali to travel by taxi that often. So, taxis are only used in emergency situation.”

With tempos and micro buses available for most of the routes, public transportations have made travelling in Kathmandu a lot convenient. However, in Kathmandu’s messy traffic, narrow lanes the best and fastest means of transportation seems to be two wheelers. Utsav Rai, a college student, has been riding bikes on Kathmandu’s streets since the last four years. “The fact that two wheelers help people get past traffic jams and even through the narrowest streets is the reason I ride bike”, he says. “However during petrol shortage, it is best to travel in micros and tempos rather than to wait in queue for petrol”, he adds.

But not everyone is lucky enough to own two wheelers to get past serpentine traffic in Kathmandu. So the only way is to hop onto buses and tempos, pay nominal fare and get down at the destination slowly and safely.