ATTOCK, Dec 4: Despite ban, heavy vehicles have again started entering the city areas during the day timings, causing traffic congestion and making road users vulnerable to fatal accidents.

In a bid to ease traffic congestion, the district administration had imposed ban on the entry of heavy vehicles into the city area from 8am to 8pm and had also installed warning boards at the all city entry points a month back in this regard.

Initially the traffic department enforced the ban but later they got lenient and allowed heavy vehicles including big trailers particularly of local iron merchants to enter the city areas. As a result, accidents are a routine feature on the city roads due to careless movement of these vehicles, the residents of the area complained.

Such violations are rampant at very busiest Bank Road near Fawara chowk, where long trailers come to unload heavy iron bars thus blocking the road for long hours.

A local resident, Zafar Rehman, said people had taken some relief after the ban was enforced and traffic police started imposing heavy fines on the violators. But unfortunately, heavy vehicles have again started entering the city areas.

Loading and unloading at peak hours by heavy vehicles kept the road blocked causing great inconvenience to road users.

A traffic police official on the condition of anonymity said that majority of local merchants enjoyed the support of political bigwigs. Whenever a traffic sergeant tries to stop heavy vehicle or takes legal action against the driver or trader concerned, he receives telephone call from influential figure and he lets the culprit go scot-free, he observed. “It’s the main reason behind ineffective implementation of the ban,” he maintained.

He said in such a situation if they ignore the orders of influential people, they were either transferred or had to face other consequences, he regretted.

Some residents of the area said the appointment of DSP traffic after a delay of over one year had not brought any visible improvement in the city traffic system.

They demanded of the Punjab chief minister and DIG traffic to give free hand to the police to enforce the ban on entry of heavy vehicles and other traffic safety rules and regulations in larger public interest.

The DSP Traffic, Chaudhry Aslam was not available for comments. However, duty officer said that since senior traffic inspector Mirza Yaseen was on leave, the situation had occurred. It will improve, when he will be back in next few days, he added.