Mysterious blockade: CM House road blocked for repairs or security?

Official says traffic police are carrying out an exercise to make the road one way.

KARACHI: The traffic police have partially blocked a strip of Ziauddin Ahmed Road from Karachi Club to the Sheraton/PIDC traffic signal and have diverted traffic towards Beaumont Road that runs behind PIDC.

No clear reason has been given so far. “The authorities should inform the public before blocking any road,” said an annoyed commuter. “They should also do their homework before and know how to deal with the traffic jams that these impediments cause.”

A traffic police SP told The Express Tribune that the road was blocked due to ongoing work by the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB). However, KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Faridi said the water board had nothing to do with it.

The Sindh chief minister’s press secretary, Allah Bachaio Memon, said that the police had blocked the road due to “problems” that had surfaced after the suicide blast at the CID centre, Civil Lines, which is just one lane away. “The US consulate has been shifted so people should use that road instead,” he advised while referring to Abdullah Haroon Road that passes the Marriott Hotel.

Traffic DIG Khurram Gulzar, however, also maintained that the road was closed because of “maintenance work”. He did not specify what kind of repairs. “The authorities concerned have not given any schedule and we don’t know when it would be completed,” he added.

The Saddar Town administration spokesman confirmed they were doing repairs. He referred queries to the Saddar Town Officer Infrastructure and Services (TOIS) Asim Ali Khan but this officer denied the statement. He said that the road had been blocked by the traffic police for security reasons.

Works and Services EDO Engineer A Rasheed Mughal also denied his department’s involvement in the blockade, saying it was probably the traffic police.

Meanwhile, another EDO disclosed that the traffic police was attempting to make the road one way. This practice was started a few days ago and would go on for another week. The EDO claimed that the traffic police had contacted the transport and communication department for help. A meeting was held and attended by a district officer of the works and services department while the Policy, Planning and Design DO from the transport and communication department, Syed Haider Ali, represented his department.

The authorities are scheduled to meet again this week to survey the results of their exercise.

In reply to a question, the EDO said that from a security point of view, making any side of the road one-way was equally important. “We might decide to create specific lanes on the road sometime in the future,” he added.

This road is a key route connecting two important parts of the city. And while the US consulate road (Abdullah Haroon Road) has been opened for the public, including motorcycles and rickshaws, the police still flag them down for frequent checks. As a result, most motorcyclists and rickshaw drivers choose to take the route that passes CM House. But since it has been made one-way, traffic is a mess during rush hour.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 23^rd, 2011.