RAWALPINDI: Due to the recent rains, mudslides near Soan have left only two lanes of the four-lane road open for traffic which will cause gridlock for thousands of commuters for about three months.

Near the Soan bridge on the banks of the Soan river and Nullah Leh, mud started sliding from the sides of the road’s under-construction wall and a bridge to connect two private housing societies and to widen Potohar Avenue.

The city traffic police have deployed additional personnel to keep the vehicular flow smooth, but they will be unable to provide four lanes for the traffic due to the mudsliding.

Along with the construction of a separate new bridge on the banks of the river Soan and Nullah Leh, the widening of the Soan bridge is still in progress.

A supporting concrete wall, close to the Soan bridge, had already collapsed due to landslides in September, due to which the traffic system remained disrupted badly for months.

Likewise, during the construction of the highway, the embankments along the road collapsed leading to landslides. There have been several fatal traffic accidents during the ongoing construction work on the highway.

The mudsliding started once again during the recent rain spell, which disrupted traffic in the already affected area. Work to remove the soil was started, however, only two lanes of the highway have been left operational for traffic at the affected area due to which the traffic flow has been disrupted.

Likewise, the construction of a big U-turn on the four-lane GT Road near Fauji Foundation Hospital has left only two lanes at the turn point due to which the road users have been facing problems.

In this regard, a senior officer of the National Highway Authority said that on the main highway, where four lines were running continuously, making a U-turn was against the NHA rules on a curved road and near a bridge.

He said that the U-turn will not only affect the traffic flow, but will also increase the risk of accidents. It would have been better if an elevated bridge was constructed, starting from Shifa Eye Hospital to the entry of DHA Phase I, he added.

Many residents of the societies were of the same view, but nobody was willing to convince the executors of the so-called development work.

Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Taimoor Khan said that the job of the city traffic police was to keep traffic flowing, because it would take about 2-1/2 months to repair the damaged area.

He said that instructions had been issued to the officers and officials posted there in this regard, while an additional number of wardens will also be posted on Monday to ensure that the affected area does not create traffic problems for road users.

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2023