KARACHI, March 20: Commuters faced difficulties on different roads connecting to Banaras as vehicular traffic remained suspended for more than 45 minutes at Banaras Chowk due to disruption in traffic signal system on Tuesday morning.

Long queues of vehicles were observed on Manghopir Road, Qasba Colony Road, Orangi Road and Abdullah College Road. Only one traffic constable was busy manually regulating the traffic, but the situation was aggravated by the minibuses that opted for wrong side of the two way tracks.

Though some police personnel were present in a van, they did not help regulate the traffic. The portion of Shahrah-i-Orangi from Banaras Chowk to Orangi Sector-5 has been closed for the last many months for repair, which added to the miseries of commuters.

Shopkeepers said traffic problems were generally created there due to presence of handcarts on the main roads.

The only solution to the problem was construction of a flyover and removal of handcarts and inter-city buses from the roads leading to Banaras Chowk, he said.

Instead of improving the system, whenever traffic gets blocked vehicles were diverted towards Metroville, the shopkeepers said adding that the long standing problem needs proper attention of the concerned authorities.