Traffic mess at the main avenue worsening by the day

RAWALPINDI: Traffic woes at the main avenue of the city, Benazir Bhutto Road, have exacerbated during the month of Ramazan. Increase in the number of accidents, traffic jams and encroachments have made it difficult for commuters to ply on the road, which is also popularly known as Murree Road.

“The flow of traffic at Committee Chowk remains clogged for most part of the day, particularly from morning to late evening hours. Even the pedestrians cannot cross the road easily,” said Arshad Qasim, a salesman.

Lack of pedestrian bridges on the other hand, have made the situation more cumbersome, as commuters have to dodge a number of people while travelling on this road.

Mehboob Elahi, a resident of Committee Chowk, said that traffic police had closed many crossing points on the road in order to maintain smooth flow of traffic, but the measures were not producing desired results.

He said traffic from the adjacent areas in the form of motorcycles and cycles kept on breaching the barriers, which made it even more dangerous for the vehicles operating on the main road.

“It is not possible to drive properly on this road with so many obstructions and lack of decorum. It is always a tricky road to drive on,” he added.

Similarly, Farooq Safdar, shared an incident of his wife suffering a severe accident on the road a few days back. “She was sitting on a motorcycle with my father-in-law when they met a dangerous accident. Her father was killed and my wife got severe injuries.”

Zahid Sagheer, a businessman based in Rawalpindi, said the Committee Chowk underpass was constructed with the cost of Rs32 million, but currently the upper part of the link road was being used as parking area. “So much money has been used on this project. They should at least try to optimise its use.” The issue of parking vehicles at random areas is another major concern on this road, he said.

Furthermore, commuters also complained of roadside stalls and other encroachments which were narrowing the space for the commuters. “Link roads are marred with unregulated parking and various stalls. At some places, even the main road is encroached upon,” said Humayun, a resident of Saidpur.

Traffic police official Umer Faisal said, “The newly constituted City Traffic Police has tried its best to enforce the traffic laws, but due to the extra weight of traffic on this road it could not be eradicated.”

“Significant portion of the road is being encroached upon by shopkeepers and the trend has gained momentum this month due to Eid. Similarly, other stalls, push carts and vendors are making the situation more difficult,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 7^th, 2010.