Drigh Road Flyover closed for the umpteenth time

Construction work expected to take three months, says project director

KARACHI: The Drigh Road Flyover on Karachi's main thoroughfare Sharae Faisal has been closed once again for construction, causing severe traffic jams and issues for commuters.

Long queues and jam-packed traffic jams painted a grim picture on Monday, as commuters were stuck in traffic due to the flyover’s closure.

The flyover was shut down on the orders of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation’s (KMC) technical services wing. The flyover connecting Drigh Road to Gulistan-e-Jauhar was shut down around 4pm on Sunday for repair work, forcing airport-bound commuters to take to the one-way road towards Rashid Minhas Road, causing a massive traffic jam at the underpass at Sharae Faisal and Rashid Minhas Road intersection.

Sources inside the KMC told Express News that the Drigh Road Flyover has allegedly become a source of easy money-making for some officers of the technical services wing, as the flyover is shut down every now and then in the name of restoration work.



The sources added that the flyover was closed for the fourth time in the last six months for 'repair work', on which hundreds of thousands of rupees have been spent. But despite the constant repair work, it is frequently shut down for further restoration.

The Drigh Road Flyover has become a hub of corruption with some officers' underhand dealings, which is the reason why the flyover is not being restored properly, according to sources.

KMC Technical Services Director-General Shahab Nawaz declined to comment on the issue. However, the KMC spokesperson said that the restoration work on the Drigh Road Flyover would be completed by Monday morning.

Meanwhile, adding to the confusion, there were reports that the Sindh government handed over the project to the Karachi Development Programme on Sunday night.



Project Director Niaz Soomro told Express News that the flyover’s condition was worsening day by day and that construction work would take up to three months.

The flyover extends over half-a-kilometre, which is why the construction will take so long, he said. Soomro said the Sindh government released the funds for the construction.

The construction will cost more than Rs20 million and we will try to complete it as soon as possible, Soomro said.