Kathmandu, June 3 -- The government is preparing to launch a women-only transportation initiative called the 'Blue Bus' service. First announced in March as part of a 100-point governance reform agenda, the project has now received formal financial backing in the annual budget for the upcoming fiscal year of 2026-27.

The Department of Transportation Management and Sajha Yatayat, the state-linked transport cooperative, are drafting the operational blueprint. The discussions focus on route allocation, cost management, projected ridership, and long-term sustainability.

The government's initial plan was to deploy at least 25 buses for the service within 100 days of government formation. To ensure safety, the budget speech confirmed that the...