The Communication and Works Department (CWD) plans for an underpass at the entrance to Model Town to pre-empt expected traffic congestion and bottle-neck at the end of the Kalma Chowk flyover towards Model Town,.
The Model Town Mor, the entrance of the town, is some 300 metres from the ending point of the Kalma Chowk flyover. The underpass would begin from this point and lead the traffic from Main Boulevard into the town.
Tahir Hussain Kardar, the Model Town Society (MTS) president, told The Express Tribune that 80 per cent of the traffic in to Model Town came from Main Boulevard. He said once the flyover is open for traffic, it will create huge problems for vehicles coming from Gulberg and turning right towards Model Town.
“The average speed of a vehicle on a flyover is about 70 kilometres per hour. This will mean a massive traffic jam at the town’s entrance as car coming off the bridge will be forced to slow down by traffic looking to turn into Model Town,” he said.
He said that public transport, stopping at each end of the flyover, will add to the mess. Accidents will consequently increase, he said.
Kardar said that the CWD initially did not pay heed to their concerns. “When we threatened to take the issue to the court, they agreed to take up the issue with the chief minister.”
The chief minister then directed the CWD officials to find a solution to the problem, he said.
Kardar said that the CWD and NESPAK presented two options to the MTS, including an underpass into Model Town from Naseerabad or under Linear Park, which required acquiring 20 kanals of land.
“Neither solution was acceptable to us. We did not want to close the existing entrance to Model Town,” he said. Finally, NESPAK has agreed to design an underpass at the existing entrance, he added. Kardar said that the single-road underpass would only be open to traffic from Main Boulevard.
He said that the MTS was awaiting the final design of the underpass. “We have also asked them to keep in mind that 15 per cent of traffic out of Model Town turns right towards Kot Lakhpat. If they are ignored in designing the underpass, problems will follow.
Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday visited the site of the Kalma Chowk flyover, where he was briefed about the work progress. The CM announced that the ground breaking ceremony for an underpass at the chowk connecting Main Boulevard and Garden Town would be held on August 14. The underpass, the CM said, would be completed within three months.
A CWD official told The Tribune that planning work on a Model Town underpass had begun. However, he said he could not say when the project would be executed. He said that the Kalma Chowk underpass was the bigger priority. “After this we will see the feasibility of the Model Town underpass,” he added.
Sabir Khan, the Kalma Chowk flyover project director, said that both the Kalma Chowk and Model Town underpasses were “on the cards”. He confirmed that NESPAK had also started working on the planning of the latter.
He said that funds for both the underpasses would be arranged by the city district government.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 11th, 2011.
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