Link Road crater diverts traffic

LAHORE: A crater 8 to 10 feet long and 6 to 8 feet wide is causing traffic jams on the Model Town Link Road. People are taking alternative routes to their destinations. The crater developed due to the poor sewerage system under the road. Sewer waste settled under the road and caused this crater.

The Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) spokesperson Imtiaz Mujtaba said that 12 tube wells are currently working in Model Town.  Around 9 pm, he said, 8 of those 12 tube wells were turned off, cutting the water supply short as it was important to lessen the water supply to continue the work. “We cannot stop the water supply in Model Town as it’ll affect household work. We’ll finish this work by tomorrow,” he added

Imran Raza principal staff officer to the chief minister visited the area yesterday and called the Wasa’s SDO and executive engineer who examined the road and monitored the work that is proceeding with heavy machinery in three shifts for 24 hours.  Raza said, “This year heavy monsoons have badly affected the old infrastructure. Old sewerage lines on this road could not bear the monsoon which brought almost 320 rain showers. The repair work will take one more night. ” At one point during the day, the machinery had blocked traffic on one lane while the crater had taken over the other leaving aggravated drivers and commuters stuck on the Link Road. This situation continued for close to 12 hours till Raza came and shifted the machinery so that the one lane could be opened up for traffic to pass through.

This crater is also affecting business in the busy commercial area.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 9^th, 2010.