November 24, 2006	Friday	Ziqa'ad 2, 1427

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ISLAMABAD Nov 23: Traffic snarls during VVIP movements on Islamabad Highway continue to remain a thorn in the side of the residents of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, with no practicable solution in sight.

One such snarl-up was witnessed on Thursday when Islamabad traffic police blocked entry to Islamabad Highway at all points during the movement of the visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao’s motorcade causing a great deal of inconvenience to the commuters, especially to those coming from Rawalpindi.

Two-wheelers and four-wheelers were parked bumper-to-bumper at Kurri Road, Karal Chowk and Kak Pull opening up on Islamabad Highway.

The worst traffic mess was on the ever-busy Murree Road right from Saddar up to Faizabad, with the Argus-eyed police and plain clothes law-enforcement agencies personnel making their presence felt at Faizabad - the entry point to the federal capital.

Those sitting in vans, wagons and buses had to disembark and inch their way out of the tightly-spaced vehicles to reach their destinations, while those caught in the traffic mess with their vehicles had no option but to wait and curse their luck.

Though the flow of traffic became normal after about an hour, it was of no use, as dozens of people could not reach the airport, bus terminals, railway station or hospitals.

A similar traffic diversion was seen on Jinnah Avenue on Wednesday morning when apparently Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz was to arrive at Parliament House.

“What this government has given us: price hike, unemployment, terrorism and VVIP culture. What more they want to give us,” said Ahsan, 27, one of the commuters caught in the traffic mess.

There was a general impression among the commuters that their lives had become a hell due to these road blockades referred to as “route” in police jargon.

The VVIP movement becomes more painful for the commuters whenever a foreign dignitary arrives in Pakistan. On such occasions, the federal capital wears the look of some garrison town with gun-toting police lining Islamabad Highway and manning every entry and exit point to the capital.

SOLUTION: The government needs to construct separate roads for VVIP movements. A tunnel could also be built from Islamabad Airport to the desired destinations for such movements without disturbing the flow of traffic on Islamabad Highway and all roads approaching the federal capital.

A copter can be used for the movement of President Musharraf between the President House and his Rawalpindi Camp Office rather than closing Islamabad Highway hours before to the inconvenience of the people.

As far as the movement of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz is concerned, the road blockades must be brief to cause less trouble to the already troubled people.

There have been instances when people had to wait for two to three hours during the movement of President Musharraf in Lahore and Karachi.