No Instant Remedy In Sight To Get Rid Of Frequent Traffic Mess On Capital Major Roads

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Nov, 2018 ) :Frequent traffic congestion on major arteries of the Federal capital may continue to test the nerves of daily commuters as the practical steps taken by the authorities concerned appeared insufficient to ease the situation.

Capital Development Authority (CDA) and Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) are two major stakeholders supposed to play a vital role in providing smooth and safe travel to road-users but unfortunately it seemed that both of them are lacking coordination.

The hot-spots of Islamabad where the traffic clogged for several hours daily included Islamabad Expressway, Kashmir Highway, Kahuta Road falling in rural area of the capital, Islamabad Club Road and Park Road.

The CDA had worked out several plans to ensure smooth traffic on capital roads by providing ring roads, bridges, underpasses and overpasses in last two years but not even a single one could be materialized due to financial constraints and bureaucratic hiccups.

The "Future Planned Projects" placed on the list of development schemes for the city in January 2017 included overpasses on Nazim-ud-Din Road and Fazal-e-Haq Road over Faisal Avenue (700m); underpass at the Shakarparian Intersection on Islamabad Highway; interchange at intersection of 9th Avenue and Jinnah Avenue; interchange at I.J.P Road and 9th Avenue; interchange at Peshawar Morr on Kashmir Highway; interchange on Kashmir highway/7th Avenue link; and interchange at Koral Chowk on Islamabad Express way.

However, the ITP is undoubtedly managing over 900,000 registered vehicles of Islamabad with its 628 officials, half of them deputed for VIP movements, requires a muscle boost regarding reinforcement of the traffic police.

Talking to APP, the CDA sources admitted that the major development projects in the federal capital only remained on papers and could not see the light of day due to paucity of funds.

The ITP top official said there was a dire need to build the Ring road on Islamabad expressway and urged the department concerned to widen the roads, terming the ill-planned road infrastructure a major reason behind road accidents.

He said they had written over 2,000 letters to CDA pertaining to road furniture but it appeared that the words were fallen on deaf ears.

The official said, "We need more force to manage long queues of vehicles which can be seen on major roads especially in peak hours".

He stressed for promoting the cycling culture in the Islamabad as the use of vehicles had ascended within short span of time.

Meanwhile, commuters expressed concerns over non-execution of projects and said the deteriorating situation on roads demanded urgent remedial steps to keep the citizens away from daily sufferings.

Ijaz Anwar, who daily travels from Bahria Town to Sector F-8 said it was a nerve-testing job to reach the office in time or get back home as a lot of time was wasted behind the queues of heavy vehicles.

He said there was no other solution to this mess except construction of a ring road on both sides of the route. He said all the three lanes are frequently seen occupied by heavy trucks.

Another commuter Iftikhar Ali pointing out the traffic jam on main Kashmir Highway near the Sunday Bazar said the buyers parked their vehicles on main Highways which aggravated the already worsening situation.

He said, the consumers who came for shopping should be provided a dedicatedparking place to give a sigh of relief to Kashmir Highway commuters.