Poor condition of service roads needs immediate attention

[Salman]

Rawalpindi : The service roads on both sides of the under-construction flyover between Rahmanabad and Sixth Road are damaged and broken creating problems for motorists and commuters and resulting in traffic jams for most part of the day.

The labourers throw wastewater on service roads, which multiplies problems for motorists and pedestrians. While passing through these roads, one feels that rain has occurred or a water pipe or sewerage pipeline has leaked because dirty water accumulates in big and small ditches. The 10-foot wide roads on both sides are carpeted by only 5 feet, while the remaining 5-foot patches are covered with mud. Due to non-carpeting of 5-foot roads on both sides, a large number of motorists prefer to use the carpeted road while passing through these service roads, which also causes traffic jams.

The motorists expressed their anguish and concern over the poor planning and strategy adopted by the Communication and Works Department (C&WD) during work on the flyover project.

Arsalan Hafeez, whose car was stuck in traffic jam, expressed his annoyance over the condition of roads broken at different points and the non-carpeting of full 10-foot wide roads. He said that the concerned department should have first carpeted the entire road in addition to doing patchwork.

Owais Aslam, whose bike was stuck in a deep cavity of the broken road covered with water, expressed concern. He said that the concerned authorities should have first worked on improving the condition of service roads for smooth flow of traffic. The entire traffic has choked due to the broken road, he stated. People are suffering badly because of improper planning before starting work on the flyover project, he remarked.

Other motorists also expressed similar views and blamed the C&WD for its inefficiency and incompetence with regard to poor planning.

The motorists appealed to Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif and PML-N MNA Hanif Abbasi to take notice of the issue.

When this correspondent contacted C&WD Superintendent Engineer Farhat Munir, who is supervising the flyover project, he did not receive calls despite several attempts.

However, Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) Spokesman Umar Farooq stated that the construction and carpeting of service roads was the component of the flyover project, executed by the C&WD, on the orders of the Punjab chief minister. The RDA has nothing to do with the project, he added.