Commercial vehicles industry in Pakistan

The industry of commercial vehicles has grown a lot in many countries, and Pakistan is one. A commercial vehicle is a type of automobile which is used to transfer goods and passengers. In Pakistan, we see commercial vehicles in everyday life as well. For a vehicle to be called a commercial vehicle, it should be registered with an excellent company to run on a commercial basis. However, in Pakistan, some vehicles are running without registration and are running on a commercial basis; that is a debate for later; however, the industry of commercial vehicles in Pakistan has overgrown in Pakistan in the 20th century 21st century.

Commercial vehicle industry in Pakistan

The commercial vehicles industry of Pakistan has shown rapid growth in the past four years, from 2015 to 2019. It is expected to show more growth in the oncoming years from 2020 to 2024. The Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of the automotive manufacturing industry was 16.3% in the past four years. 

Although many privately owned cars are running in Pakistan, many commercial vehicles are running on Pakistan's roads. Despite being an underdeveloped and third-world country, Pakistan has shown profitable growth in the commercial vehicle sector industry. There are several types of commercial vehicles that are currently running in Pakistan across the country. The details of those vehicles are as follows:-

Auto rickshaws:

The first commercial vehicle that comes into mind is auto-rickshaws. They are used to carry passengers from one place to another. These autos fulfill the definition of being a commercial vehicle that should be carrying passengers or transferring goods for a vehicle to be commercial. Thus, auto-rickshaws take passengers from one place to another in Pakistan cities and are among the oldest commercial vehicles running across Pakistan's different cities. 

The owner of auto-rickshaws sometimes drives these rickshaws themselves. Sometimes, these autos hire drivers who cause these autos on a rent and commission basis.nd give the decided commission to the auto-rickshaws owner on whose behalf the drivers are driving these auto-rickshaws.

Yellow cab:

In 1992, the yellow cabs were introduced in Pakistan in, which 51000 taxis were introduced, and they were used to transfer passengers from one place to another, just like auto-rickshaws do. However, the auto-rickshaws were three-wheelers, and for yellow cabs, the car needed to be painted yellow. It would be used to transfer passengers from one place to another inside the cities of Pakistan. With time, these yellow cabs kept increasing in numbers as people found a way of earning through the yellow cab commercial scheme. These vehicles were introduced for the convenience of those who didn't have their cars or couldn't drive; thus, they traveled through commercial yellow cabs.

Minibusses:

The minibusses also fulfill the definition of being a commercial vehicle. Those buses were introduced in Pakistan to carry passengers from one place to another. The minibusses have a seating capacity of 30 seats. They are divided into two portions. The front portion is divided for ladies who have 10 to 14 seats for the lady's compartment and 16 to 20 seats for the portion of gents. The minibusses are economical as the rent was significantly less when they were introduced. Still, these minibusses do not charge much rent. 

Therefore, these minibusses are used by those passengers who are from a lower-class families or could not afford the rent of auto-rickshaws or taxis. These minibusses in Pakistan run on different routes in different Pakistan cities, and they run on a fixed timetable. However, now the timeframe of these buses has been disturbed currently.

Large buses:

The large buses in Pakistan were introduced for longer routes than minibusses. They were introduced to cover longer routes than the routes of the minibusses. However, these large buses also run in Pakistan's different cities as they do not travel outside the cities. Some examples of large buses that run in Pakistan in other cities are 7C, 11H, etc. Moreover, these buses also run on a commercial basis in Pakistan's various cities, as sometimes the owner drives these buses. Sometimes the drivers hired by owners drive these buses and give the agreed commission to the buses' owners. These buses are kept updated from time to time.

Qingqi:

The Qingqis were introduced in Pakistan in the previous decade for those passengers who could not afford to travel through other modes of transport. The qingqis run on short routes and are still running from one town of the city to another city in the city as these qingqis are destined and designed for short routes. This mode of transport is used by those passengers who cannot afford the rent of significant vehicle or have to travel on a more minor route.

Coaches (local and national):

Another type of vehicle that runs on a commercial basis is the coach. There are two types of coaches, local and national.

Local coaches:

Local coaches, just like minibusses, run inside the city. However, now there are very few coaches left who run inside the country.

National coaches:

The national coaches run from city to city to transfer the passengers from one city to another. These national coaches are used by those people who have to travel from one city to another city.

Therefore, the large coaches travel from city to city and have a seating capacity of 64 passengers. Small coaches that travel from town to town have a seating capacity of 30 to 36 passengers.

Therefore, the above-mentioned commercial vehicles are running in Pakistan, and passengers use them as they run throughout the country. There are other commercial vehicles as well, which are running across the country. However, those commercial vehicles are used to move products from one location to another. These vehicles are as follows:-

Suzuki Ravi pickup:

The Suzuki Ravi pickup is used to transfer goods from one place to another. It is used by individual people and sometimes by companies when the goods and equipment have to be transferred from one place to another. These pickups are used to transfer small goods and equipment.

Shehzore trucks:

The shehzore trucks are more significant than Suzuki Ravi pickups. Different commercial companies use these trucks for the transfer of their goods, and logistics companies use these trucks to transfer goods from one logistics destination to another logistics destination. These trucks are also run as commercial trucks by several companies in Pakistan, and they are medium in size and could transfer goods more efficiently.

Large cargo trucks:

Other Commercial Vehicles used by the organizations are large cargo trucks that run across different Pakistan cities. These trucks are significant; that's why they are used to transfer goods from one city to another city and from one place to another. When there is a large amount of cargo, then that cargo is moved by these trucks. Many organizations and individuals rely on these trucks by which the goods and furniture are transferred with these large cargo trucks.

Container trucks:

The container trucks are used to transfer goods as well, and these trucks are from 14-wheelers to 22-wheelers. Moreover, a container is attached to these trucks; that's why they are called container trucks. The goods travel in these trucks category-wise locked in those containers. These trucks are destined for long routes when the goods have to travel from one city to another.

Therefore, those mentioned above are the commercial goods transporting vehicles from one place to another and from one city to another. These vehicles are used to transfer goods and equipment from place to place and from city to city. In Pakistan, the commercial vehicles industry is one of the few sectors that have shown growth in Pakistan in the past 5-10 years of Pakistan. It is one of the few industries that have shown positive growth despite the economic crises that Pakistan has been facing for a very long time and despite the ongoing Corona Virus pandemic.

Although in 2020, there was not much movement of these goods and passenger transport vehicles because, for almost 7-8 months, there was a lockdown.

The introduction of UBER and CAREEM in Pakistan

In Fall 2015, Careem entered the commercial vehicles market in Pakistan. People slowly and gradually started shifting towards Careem taxis. They were reliable, safe, and secure because the whole route was monitored on the Internet and by people. Especially ladies felt a lot safer because their offices observed the vehicles of Careem. The entire transport system of Careem was maintained and monitored through the Internet.

After introducing Careem, Uber also entered the Pakistani market in mid-2016 and gave tough competition to Careem as Uber was a USA-based company. Like Careem, Uber transport and taxis were also monitored through the Internet, and the Internet also observed the routes on which routes the car is traveling. Due to Uber and Careem as commercial transport, the yellow cabs were removed from Pakistan with time. People felt a lot safer and more reliable when traveling in Uber and Careem instead of Yellow cab taxis.

The takeover of Careem by Uber:

In Fall 2019, Uber announced its takeover of Careem. At the beginning of 2020, Uber acquired Careem for $3.1 billion. Now Careem has just become the subsidiary of Uber as now the company is renamed UBER Careem. This takeover proved to be a massive success for Uber as Uber is currently the only one in the market, creating a monopoly of driving internet taxis.

Therefore, Uber eliminated its competitors from the market as they eliminated yellow cabs, which were simple taxis. By taking over Careem, Uber stopped competition as now Uber is the only one driving internet taxis.

The introduction of BYKEA in Pakistan

Just as Uber and Careem were introduced in Pakistan by driving internet taxis, the concept of bykea is similar as the bikes are driven through the Internet and are economical for those passengers who could not afford the rent of Uber and Careem. Therefore, bykea is also a commercial vehicle. They have offices in Pakistan, and the bikes are controlled through the Internet. These bikes were introduced for the passengers who take the lift on bikes, and street crimes were on the rise in Pakistan.  Therefore, bykea came up with the idea to introduce the internet bike service in Pakistan. The passenger who took lifts or the passengers who could not afford the rent of Uber and Careem would travel on bikes. They would feel safer and secure as the whole route is monitored through the Internet.

Moreover, bykea is also considered a commercial service even though the bike only carries one passenger. Thus, it fulfills the definition and requirement of being a commercial service through which bykea is a commercial service. Byker was also introduced in Pakistan at the end of 2016. In 2018, they partnered with Jazz, after which bykea enjoyed more success as a commercial service provider.

An overview of Pakistan's commercial vehicles industry

The Pakistani market is appealing for commercial vehicles; that is why Uber, Careem, and bykea were also able to gain success in the Pakistani market in a concise amount and period. The automotive sector of Pakistan is also appealing. In this sector, the workforce of almost 1800000 people has been employed, which is quite considerable.

Commercial vehicles are also manufactured in the automotive industry of Pakistan. This is one of the few Pakistan sectors that have shown growth in the past 4-5 years and still. This sector has a lot of potentials as more commercial vehicle companies could enter this sector. The commercial vehicle industry of Pakistan will also grow a lot more.

There are currently 3200 automotive manufacturing plants in Pakistan that manufacture and assemble private and commercial vehicles. Moreover, Pakistan's automotive vehicles industry contributes 4% to Pakistan's GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Still, there is a lot of potential in the commercial vehicle industry of Pakistan.

The intervention of the Tanker mafia

However, there are some drawbacks to the commercial vehicle industry in Pakistan. One of these drawbacks is the intervention of the tanker mafia in Pakistan's major cities. They have created a water shortage in the big cities of Pakistan. The tanker owners and tanker companies also run tankers on a commercial basis to provide water from their tankers. They do not follow the basics that "Access to free water is the right of everyone." In 2108, the Tanker mafia emerged in Pakistan, and since then, the tanker mafia has been providing water at high rates instead.

Discarded and obsolete commercial vehicles in Pakistan

Pakistan's commercial industries were forced to discard many of the commercial vehicles with time. Those discarded commercial vehicles are as follows:-

Trams:

The trams were introduced in Pakistan after independence. They ran on selected tracks, but with time, the trams were discarded from Pakistan because minibusses began to take their places. So trams were discontinued in the 20th century as trams only ran on selected tracks on roads. The buses could travel anywhere as the buses do not have to follow tracks; that's why Pakistan's commercial industry was forced to discontinue trams.

CNG buses in Pakistan:

The CNG buses were introduced in Pakistan in its major cities and ran for some years in the previous decade but were discontinued because the buses' maintenance was expensive. Those buses' expenses were not fulfilled; thus, those buses had to be stopped in the previous decade.

Metro buses:

The metro buses also ran in Pakistan for some time. However, that project was a flop, and the buses' maintenance was costly because they were air-conditioned buses. That's why after suffering losses for some years, the metro bus project was discarded as well due to the heavy costs incurred on the running of those buses.

Therefore, those mentioned above are the discarded commercial vehicles that ran in Pakistan for some time but had to be discontinued due to circumstances and other factors.

Commercial vehicle distributors in Pakistan

There are some commercial vehicle manufacturers and distributors in Pakistan as well. Some of these distributors and manufacturers of commercial vehicles in Pakistan are as follows:-

Ghandhara industries limited:

Located in Karachi, Ghandhara industries limit manufacturers and assemble Isuzu trucks in Pakistan and distribute them country-wise.

Afzal motors Pvt ltd:

This company also manufactures and distributes commercial buses throughout Pakistan. World-renowned brands are also associated with this company, such as Daewoo and King Long.

Shahnawaz Pvt ltd:

This company is also a distributor of commercial vehicles in Pakistan, and this company is linked with Germany as well.

Therefore, these are some of the renowned companies in the Pakistan commercial vehicles industry.

CONCLUSIONS

After all, it can be stated that the commercial vehicles industry in Pakistan is one of the significant growing industries despite the ongoing Corona Virus pandemic. And the economic situation which Pakistan has been facing for a long time. Pakistan's commercial vehicle industry is still thriving as there is a lot of potential in Pakistan's commercial vehicles industry; it has unexplored areas.

Following are the suggestions which should be followed:-

Introduce Internet monitored auto-rickshaws as well:

Just as Uber has introduced their cars in Pakistan and Bykea introduced Internet monitored bikes. There is still a lot of potential as there is a space where the Internet-monitored auto-rickshaws could be introduced in Pakistan.

Government should take strict action against the Tanker mafia:

The government should take legal action against the tanker mafia, which creates a water shortage in Pakistan and sells water at high prices. Government should take stringent legal action against this mafia as water should be provided free of cost.

Invest more in the commercial vehicles industry:

The government should invest more in the commercial vehicle industry. This is one of the few industries showing rapid growth. There is a lot of space in that area; thus, the government could invest in the commercial vehicles industry.

Therefore, the suggestions mentioned above should be followed by Pakistan's commercial vehicles industry and the government by which Pakistan's commercial vehicles industry will thrive more in later years.

The future projects in the commercial vehicles industry of Pakistan

There are currently some ongoing projects in Pakistan's commercial vehicles industry, such as the green line project, metro bus project, bullet train project, etc. Although these projects would take time, once they are launched, then they would prove beneficial for the commercial vehicles industry in Pakistan. The metro bus project has been established already in Lahore, but these bus stops need improvement. The bullet train project would take a long time as it is not an easy task. The green line project might be introduced shortly, as currently, the work is ongoing on that particular project.