The residents of the capital have demanded repair of Sohan-Koral Eastern Service Road linking Allama Iqbal Town, Khunna, Ghouri Town and Koral localities.
Residents have also demanded the demolition of ever increasing encroachments on either side of the road.
Abdul Hannan a government servant said that most of the milkmen had occupied the roadsides illegally, to keep their buffalos there adding that mushroom growth of marriage halls on the roadsides was another hindrance to smooth flow of traffic.
Malik Musawar, a motorist suggested that Service Road should be widened and an underpasses be built to accommodate the increasing number of private and public service vehicles.
“The drivers have to move zig zag on the worn out road that endangers themselves and other travelers and pedestrians,” Musawwar said. He said children, women and patients suffered the most on this damaged road.
Mushtaq Ahmed an engineer said the road was originally built to run light traffic with a speed up to 50 km per hour but ever since heavy traffic including fully loaded trucks and tractors were allowed to ply on this road, the situation had worsened. He further said that craters had rapidly emerged and the traffic now moved at a snail’s pace causing unnecessary delays.
According to a traffic police official some 10,000 to 15,000 vehicles daily use this Eastern Road, which also links various parts of Islamabad. “Many accidents have already occurred due to extremely poor condition of the road”, he said.
CDA should launch repair work immediately by filling the potholes and install road signs, which are missing all over this road, Misbah bibi a woman driver pointed out. The CDA did some patchwork to fill the craters, but after recent rains they seem to have washed away, she added.
Syed Kashif Ali, a university student of the area said that construction of a bridge at Sohan Highway Signal (Chowk) was also needed as huge traffic gridlocks were witnessed daily during morning and evening rush hours.
A senior official of the engineering wing of the civic body said that Eastern Service Road from Sohan to Koral would automatically be repaired as a part of Islamabad highway expansion plan.
He informed that under the Islamabad High way expansion project, the 24km-long Highway from Zero Point to Rawat would be expanded to five lanes. It involves building six interchanges – full cloverleaf interchanges at I-8, Khanna and Koral Chowk, a partial cloverleaf interchange and an intersection at G.T. Road and another intersection at Sohan as well as upgrading of the existing Faizabad interchange.
“The existing Faizabad interchange will be completely rehabilitated and additional loops and ramps will be added to it” he added.