Post-rain debris damages vehicles

Commuters are forced to repair, replace perforated parts in times of soaring inflation

KARACHI:

Where submerged streets and overflowing sewers after a brief rain spell were enough to test the patience of commuters in the port city, the scattering of debris across major roads has only added to their grievances.

Despite the local authorities announcing efforts to remove rainwater from roads after the monsoon rains, the extended accumulation of stagnant water has destroyed the infrastructure of the road network, which has developed countless erosions including the surfacing of sharp stones and rough particles, all of which pose risk to the vehicles of daily commuters, who have to unwillingly spend extra money, in times of peaking inflation, on the repair and replacement of the punctured parts of their cars and motorbikes.

Mohammad Kamran, a resident of Gulshan-e-Iqbal, expressed his struggles as a motorcyclist, trying to manoeuvre through the sea of pointed pebbles, stones and garbage, without getting his tyres punctured.

“Every time it rains, the roads become extremely bumpy due to the debris which starts surfacing,” said Kamran, who resented the constant threat that the presence of debris posed to his motorbike after a spell of rain.

According to Muhammad Toheed, an urban planner, Karachi’s road network is prone to waterlogging due to which a sizable chunk of debris starts accumulating during the rainy season. “This debris includes plenty of sharp objects, which consistently damages the tyres and other parts of cars and motorbikes driving over,” validated Toheed.

Asim, another motorcyclist, agreeing with Toheed, shared his unfortunate experience with the bumpy roads. “As I was passing by the Liaquatabad post office a couple of days ago, my tire burst as it hit a sharp-edged stone. Even though I managed to get the tyre repaired myself, I had to borrow money in order to replace the tube,” depressingly said Asim, who revealed that spare parts for vehicles, including tyres, had become extremely expensive.

“During the past one year, the prices of motorcycle and car tyres have increased by more than 50 per cent, whereas the prices of car parts have surged by up to 30 to 40 per cent,’ confessed Shoaib, a shopkeeper selling motorcycle and car tyres, who brought to notice the fact that many commuters were choosing to simply repair damaged tyres instead of replacing them, given the high rate of inflation.

Such is the case of Noor Muhammad, a food delivery boy, who delayed replacing the damaged tubes of his motorbike’s tyres, until they finally gave up and exploded during one of his deliveries. “When affording even the bare necessities has become difficult, I had to spend thousands of rupees purchasing new tyres for my motorbike,” resented Noor, who urged the government to improve the deplorable condition of roads after the rainy season so that low-income commuters like him could be spared the unwarranted blow to their already stressed budgets.

Speaking to The Express Tribune on the matter, the Sindh Labour Minister, Saeed Ghani said, “the local bodies, including the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) have been tasked with the duty of ensuring the cleanliness and repair of roads. The damages incurred by the roads due to the rains will be fixed soon.”

Published in The Express Tribune, August 9^th, 2023.