ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Thursday approved the construction of an underpass in PWD area on Islamabad Expressway.

The CDA will construct the underpass from its own resources to ease traffic gridlock on the busiest expressway. “Today, I approved the file, in principle, for construction of the underpass,” said CDA Chairman Amer Ali Ahmed.

He said after completion of the formalities, the directorate concerned would seek tender to award the contract. “This project will play a significant role in reducing traffic congestion on the expressway,” he said, adding that the CDA would execute the project from its own resources.

Another CDA official said as per initial estimate, the underpass will be constructed at a cost ranging between Rs250 and Rs270 million. The CDA had planned to expand the expressway from Koral to G.T. Road under a project worth Rs10 billion. In its last budget, the previous government had earmarked Rs7 billion for the project, but without the approval of PC-I.

Later, the PTI government dropped the project as it had not been approved. However, for the fiscal year 2019-20, the federal government, in response to CDA’s demand of Rs10 billion, had allocated around Rs450 million. However, sources say that until the project is approved by the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec), the approved funds cannot be released.

Meanwhile, CDA as a temporary relief decided to construct the underpass at PWD to ease traffic to some extent. CDA Member Engineering Humayun Akhtar said once the underpass project begins, the civic agency would make every effort to get it completed within six months. He said after the start of the said project, CDA will also commence work on Korang Bridge on the same road.

The widening of the expressway was inaugurated by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in July 2015. Under the original PC-I, the road was to be expanded to five lanes from Zero Point to G.T. Road Rawat within two years to make the busy road a signal-free corridor.

However, later CDA divided the project into phases. During the first phase, the road was widened from Zero Point to Faizabad and then upto Koral. Sohan, Khana and Koral interchanges were also constructed. It was also decided that service roads will be built on either sides of the expressway. However, so far no work has been started on the service road from Faizabad to Koral.

The existing service road is dilapidated and while travelling towards Koral from Faizabad, the service road meets a dead end at Shakrial because of a petrol pump, creating inconvenience for the commuters.

In the past, the CDA made many announcements to construct a service road there but it did not take any practical step.

It had also been noticed that motorists, in order to cross the dead end of the service road, drive on one way track, which is highly risky.

An engineer of CDA said besides constructing the underpass, the civic agency should also pay heed towards the service roads.

Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2019