RAWALPINDI: Signboards are crucial for traffic management, guidance of the general public and ensuring safety, particularly during development projects.

Almost four months have passed since work on the remodeling of the busiest Kutchery Chowk started, and the project is now near completion. However, it has been observed that no signboards were installed at critical locations to facilitate road users.

According to official sources, prior to the start of the construction work, the district administration was intimated that nine alternative diversion points and six blocking points had been identified around the working area to regulate the flow of traffic.

The blocking points were identified at Shalimar Chowk, Mall Road, Police Lines gate, old Airport Road, Fatima Jinnah University gate, Rashid Minhas Road, Bakery Chowk, APS gate Fort Road and Annexe Chowk (from Nazar Chowk).

Authorities were requested for installing signboards at blocking points and alternative diversion sides, say traffic police

The police personnel have been deployed on these blocking points to manage traffic on the dilapidated roads which have no traffic signboards, streetlights. The police are seen concentrating on issuing challans than managing traffic.

The same situation has been noticed on alternative diversion sides, which are at Gulistan Colony turn Jhelum Road, Annexe Chowk Jinnah Park, Airport Road, Shalimar turn Mall Road, COD Chowk Nazar Chowk, Adiala Road, opposite Topi Rakh Jhelum Road, Lahore Mor, Mushtaq Baig Shaheed Road, Attock Petrol Pump u-turn, old Airport Road and Marrir Chowk.

Chief Traffic Officer Rawalpindi Farham Aslam has brought the issue under the attention of the commissioner Rawalpindi as commuters were suffering problems and facing delays in their movement.

Since the Kutchery Chowk remodeling project was launched on November 3, 2025, the traffic police have written at least four letters to the commissioner Rawalpindi, seeking his attention towards the issue.

In his letter, copy available with Dawn, the CTO requested that the authority concerned be directed to install proper visible signboards at the blocking points and alternative diversion sides for the information and guidance of the general public to avoid any untoward incident.

A similar request was also made by the traffic authorities to the commissioner Rawalpindi regarding the installation of signboards for traffic management during the construction work on Adiala Road and repair of sewerage system on Sixth Road.

It has been observed that no signboards have been installed for information and guidance of the general public

The city traffic authorities have also brought the issue under the notice of the DIG traffic police, the city police officer, director general Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) and the chief executive officer Chaklala Cantonment Road.

There are also scores of non-functional traffic signals in the city. The traffic situation can be well analysed on the basis of the official figures of fatal and non-fatal road accidents in November, December, January and February.

Aftab Ahmed, a citizen, said that huge tax money was being spent on mega projects by the government but the authorities do not allocate a very small amount to repair the faulty traffic signals or install signboards. There are also no funds for carrying out patchworks on the alternative roads which have been in dilapidated conditions.

He added that whenever road work was started in other countries, an alternative road was constructed and often portable or roll-up signs were used for lane closures, diversions and speed restrictions.

And at the construction site, the tyres of trucks transporting construction material are washed and as a result no dust or littered construction material are seen on the roads.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2026