Rawalpindi: Rs 10 billion elevated expressway project work begins after Eid

[Naveed Yaseen]

By Aamir Yasin
RAWALPINDI: Punjab Chief Minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shahbaz Sharif will inaugurate the ambitious Elevated Expressway Project after Eidul Fitr.

The Rs10 billion expressway would be built over Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Road aKa Murree Road from the Mall to Faizabad, sources in Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) told Daily Times.

The expressway will be completed in three years and will facilitate the flow of traffic on Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Road that remains chock-a-block with traffic most of the time causing longs snarl-ups and wastage of precious fuel and time.

National Engineering Services Pakistan (Nespak) is preparing the design of the expressway. At present, the company is conducting the topographic survey that is likely to be completed early next year.

According to a recent study, around 100,000 vehicles daily use Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Road and the construction of expressway would save around 200,000 people boarding 60,000 vehicles from traffic delay and serious accidents.

The expressway will run over Murree Road from the Mall (Flashman Hotel) and join Islamabad Highway via Faizabad Interchange.

The expressway would have six lanes with interchanges at Marir Chowk, Chandni Chowk, Sixth Road and Shamsabad. After its completion the motorists would be able to cover a distance of around 25 kilometers within 10 to 15 minutes, saving their precious time and fuel.

The sources said that the project would be completed in three phases. The Mall to Marir Chowk stretch of the expressway falls in the first phase; Marir Chowk to Chandni Chowk stretch in the second phase; and Chandni Chowk to Faizabad section in the third phase.

They said Marir Chowk to Chandni Chowk section of the expressway would be completed within 36 months while the remaining work would be completed within 46 months.

Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) Director General M Makeen Shahbaz said that the project was scheduled to be inaugurated on October 1, but the date was changed in view of Eidul Fitr. He said the new date would be announced after Eid vacations.

He said the RDA had completed its homework to start the project.

Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly Ch Nisar Ali Khan on Saturday said that the Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif will inaugurate work on the Rs 10 billion Elevated Expressway Project after Eidul Fitr.

He said this while talking to a delegation headed by CM Inspection Team Chairman Chaudhry Sarfaraz Afzal.

Nisar said the government would take all essential measures to ensure protection of public life and property. He said development funds would be distributed among union councils (UCs) equally to sustain consistency in increasing prosperity of the city.

Khan directed the police to take action against gamblers and drug peddlers. He said the Punjab government was committed to eradicating corruption, poverty, injustice and illiteracy from the society under the headship of Shahbaz Sharif.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...008_pg11_7