Swat, DI Khan-Peshawar Motorways included in PSDP

Commercial and financial feasibility of 340km Peshawar-DI Khan motorway underway

PESHAWAR: The provincial government on Thursday said it had included the second phase of the Swat Motorway and the Peshawar to Dera Ismail Khan (DI Khan) motorway in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) of the ongoing fiscal year, while the commercial and financial feasibility for the projects has been completed.

This was disclosed as K-P Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Thursday chaired a meeting to deliberate upon the status of the two projects.

The chief minister was told that two extensions to the Swat Motorway, one 48-kilometres long and the other 36 kilometres long from Chakdara to Fatehpur have been included in the PSDP. This section will include nine interchanges at Chakdara, Shamozai, Barikot, Mingora, Kanju, Malam Jabba, Sher Palam, Matta Khwazakhela and Madayan Fatehpur.

Furthermore, the complete feasibility, detailed design and commercial documents have also been shared with the National Highways Authority (NHA). The motorway will initially have as many as four lanes, which can be later expanded up to six lanes with 13 main bridges.

The meeting was further informed that the 340-kilometres-long Peshawar-DI Khan motorway will have six lanes and three tunnels. This project has also been included in the PSDP. Moreover, a consultant has been hired for designing it and to complete the commercial and financial feasibility of the project.  The final feasibility, including commercial and financial outcome based on public-private partnership, will be presented before the respective forum by June 30 this year.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 31^st, 2020.