QUETTA: For Muhammad Ibrahim, boarding a train for the first time with his four children brought a mix of excitement and nervousness. The excitement for the new experience, but he could not help feel a bit anxious about traveling in a province where attacks on passenger trains are not rare.

Pakistan Railways and the provincial government in the southwestern Balochistan province jointly launched the Jinnah Peoples Train Service on Sept. 29 in Quetta. This is the first-ever mass transit project for Balochistan and features a passenger train that runs through a 32-kilometer railway track from the suburbs of Sariab to Kuchlak, a neighborhood in Quetta, through seven railway stations.

Attacks on passenger buses and particularly trains are common in Balochistan, Pakistan’s southwestern province plagued for long by militant violence. Separatist Baloch militant groups, such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), have frequently attacked trains and held passengers hostage.

The Jinnah Peoples Train Service was completed in a record period of 120 days at a cost of Rs3 billion [$10.83 million], according to the information ministry.

“I had never boarded a train in my entire life, this is my first journey and I was quite afraid,” Ibrahim told Arab News as he boarded the train in Sariab for Kuchlak.

“My only prayer is for peace and that there shouldn’t be any danger to this train, because it is a reliable and affordable commuting service for us.”

Ibrahim had good reason to dread the journey. Members of the proscribed BLA militant group stormed the Quetta-Peshawar bound Jaffar Express train in March 2025, resulting in an armed standoff with security forces.

The standoff ended after 28 hours, with over 30 militants, 23 soldiers, three railway employees and five passengers killed in the attack and subsequent rescue mission. Pakistan’s military said it rescued hundreds of passengers held hostage by BLA militants.

In a separate incident, a suicide blast targeted a shuttle-train service transporting passengers from Quetta’s cantonment area to the Quetta Railway Station in May. Several people were killed in the explosion.

In November 2024, dozens of people died in a bomb blast at the Quetta Railway Station, as passengers waited for the ill-fated Jaffar Express train to arrive.

Syed Najeeb Shah, another commuter who was experiencing his first-ever train journey, described the train as a “fantastic ride” featuring several facilities for customers.

“We are sitting in an air-conditioned compartment, children and other commuters are traveling happily,” Shah told Arab News.

’REMARKABLE RESPONSE’

A train driver involved in the operational work of the Jinnah Peoples Train Service identified unmanned crossings, theft of the track’s fishplates and bolts as major challenges to the initiative.

“Our department is actively raising awareness among communities from Sariab to Kuchlak that this train is our national asset and benefiting local commuters,” he said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The driver noted that the railway track passes through densely populated neighborhoods, hence authorities must remain vigilant to confront security challenges.

He praised the security arrangements for the train service, saying that Railway Police soldiers are always standing guard at carriages’ doors.

“Whenever the train stops at any station, officers step down to secure the platform and security is very effective for this service,” he said.

Muhammad Kashif, an assistant transport officer of the Pakistan Railways, said the railways, along with the district police, are taking action against people involved in harming railway tracks. He said one suspect had been taken into custody for stealing a fishplate in Kuchlak.

“The public has given a remarkable response since this mass-transit train was launched,” Kashif said.

The railway officer said the train takes three trips daily from Sariab to Kuchlak and on average, facilitates around 1,000 passengers. He said the number of carriages would be increased in Jinnah Peoples’ Train as the number of passengers grows.

Shah seemed confident the passenger service would attract more customers in the days to come.

“After this rail service, public trust in train travel would be restored, and more people would choose passenger trains as their prime commuting service,” he said.